breaking news! well, it's not always news. sometimes it's the latest rumor, or a budding scandal, or netizens' reactions to a new release. no one is innocent in the court of public opinion. subscribe now to keep up to date on the latest from our wannabes!
SBS Releases Character Chart for New Drama "Cheer Up!"
TV DRAMA • 1 hour ago
In collaboration with AXIS LABELS and SR MEDIA, SBS TV has released a character chart for the new drama CHEER UP! In a surprising turn of events, the main cast is comprised of new faces in the world of acting!
Netizens are curious about the acting skills of the rookie talent, and if they'll be able to live up to the hype, or fail miserably.
Cheer Up! tells a story of a group of cheerleaders. It is a mystery campus romance set in the backdrop of a cheering squad where worry is useless in the moment, but splendid and precious romance is.
Only three months into debut, VYBE's leader RYU SIWOO has been selected as a brand ambassador for ADIDAS. Known for his striking visuals, Ryu Siwoo made his debut with VYBE in April of 2025, and is already making waves.
In a statement, Adidas shared that Siwoo is an ideal fit for the brand’s next-gen image. The idol was spotted rocking the latest Adidas collection in a photo released by the brand.
Hashtags like #SiwooForAdidas and #AdidasxSiwoo have been seen making it's way around social media with fans praising and looking forward to the release of more photos through his partnership with Adidas.
LIME ENTERTAINMENT has also shared that VYBE will be making their comeback sometime in JULY 2025. Fans of the rookie boy group can look forward to a fresh image!
VYBE's Seojun and Wook Chosen As Judges For Community Talent Show
CELEB • 1 hour ago
Axis Labels have gone out of the box again, this time with the grand opening of their AXIS LABELS CAFE featuring pastries inspired by their idol group members.
Many idol fans were spotted visiting the opening of the cafe. True to their nature, a community talent show was hosted by AXIS LABELS, in hopes to find future trainees.
Amongst the judges for the talent show, rookie idols SEOJUN and WOOK from VYBE were spotted, only two months into their debut; showing their passionate skills and artistry despite only being rookies.
Fans who are interested in visiting the axis labels cafe, can head on down to SEONGSU.
LIME ENTERTAINMENT has also shared that VYBE will be making their comeback sometime in JULY 2025. Fans of the rookie boy group can look forward to a fresh image!
"Say Hello to Lime Entertainment's New Boy Group, VYBE! A Successful Debut With High Expectations."
CELEB • 1 hour ago
On April 11th, Lime Entertainment debuted their first boy group in over a decade, VYBE with the title track HELLO. Expectations have been high since the company first revealed their members, with many familiar faces from previous survival shows, notably NEXT GEN.
With a star-studded line-up of NEXT GEN Season 1 and 2 contestants filling 5/6 of the group, many fans have been eagerly anticipating their debut.
The group has proven their star power by garnering over 8 Million Views on YouTube, and selling 700k albums all in the first week of their debut. Industry insiders have dubbed them "Rookie Monsters", saying they will be a sight to behold this 2025.
While boy groups are still struggling to reach the Top 10 spots on music streaming sites, VYBE's debut was able to reach TOP 67 on the MELON TOP 100, proving that they will be a sight to behold as long as Lime Entertainment continues steering them in the right direction.
With their debut showcase being a huge success, garnering 300 audience members, fans are excited to see where VYBE will go next!
Vybe (바이브) has released their widely anticipated debut album 'First Chapter: Hello' along with their title track 'Hello'. Now available on all streaming platforms. Physical albums available in-stores too. Make sure to get them now!
Album Details:
35 page photobook, 1 random unit photocoard, 1 random member photocard, 1 sticker pack, 1 flip phone cut out, 1 random member profile page.
uploaded by: limeentertainment
2,125,439 views, Published April 11, 2025
duration: 0:00 - 03:05
VYBE has released their debut album FIRST CHAPTER: HELLO with their title track, 'HELLO'. Now out on all streaming platforms!
#바이브 #VYBE #LimeEntertainment #Hello #FirstChapterHello
Connect with VYBE Official Homepage : https://www.limeentertainment.co.kr/artist/detai...
Official Twitter : / vybe_limeent
Official Instagram : / vybe_limeent
Official TikTok : / vybe_limeent
ⓒ Lime Entertainment. All Rights Reserved
uploaded by: limeentertainment
823,561 views, Published March 26, 2025
duration: 0:00 - 10:39
Introducing, Lime Entertainment's first boy group in over 10 years, VYBE! Watch the start of their journey here.
#바이브 #VYBE #LimeEntertainment #OhMyMy7s
Connect with VYBE Official Homepage : https://www.limeentertainment.co.kr/artist/detai...
Official Twitter : / vybe_limeent
Official Instagram : / vybe_limeent
Official TikTok : / vybe_limeent
ⓒ Lime Entertainment. All Rights Reserved
i knew something was up when lime announced a new project! and i was absolutely right! there was no way that anything lime would do wouldn't be calculated. they've been in this industry for years, they definitely know what they're doing!
lime randomly opened a TIKTOK account a few months ago called project green, and didn't update it at all until last week! did you SEE the video they posted? even their elusive CEO made a cameo. honestly, i’ve never heard his voice up until that video.
there seems to be a total of SEVEN of them in the video but…
we actually got a sneak peek at project green at the LOTTE CHRISTMAS CHARITY CONCERT and i only spotted SIX! did something happen? or is this all going according to lime’s plan?
don’t worry though, i promise that i paid close attention to the project green boys when they went up on stage, and there were a lot of familiar faces from next gen season 1 and 2. i managed to take a few pictures as well! and i’m always open to sharing exciting stuff like this!
RYU SIWOO was the one introducing them as the PROJECT GREEN boys and i managed to take this photo of him. woah! do you think this is a sign he’ll probably be the leader of the group?
aside from siwoo, another familiar face from next gen is LUCIEL. he sounded so good live! lime entertainment really got lucky with him. look at him, doesn’t he look great?
they weren’t the only two next gen alumni though! it was crazy to see but we had SEOJUN who was their mentor on season 2 on the stage too! of course i had to take a photo of him ~
speaking of next gen, i also saw NOEL from season 1! the way he managed to capture everyone’s attention on stage was insane! i kept snapping pictures of him!
and im not sure if you remember, but i think i saw HANEUL from next gen season 1 as well. when did he become a trainee in lime entertainment? he was really good too though! look!
there was of course, a face i don’t think i’ve ever seen before. but his voice is amazing! i have no idea who he is but i took a bunch of photos of him as well!
so what exactly is project green? what has lime entertainment been planning this whole time? i need to know now!
this is so crazy? lately i’ve been hearing rumours about a lady dressed in a pink shirt and a guy dressed in this black outfit approaching people around lotte world and some shopping districts, but apparently it’s true?
rumor has it that they’ve been approaching people and passing them some sort of business cards, saying that they should ‘give the number a call’ if they have any desire to join the entertainment industry. i really didn’t think much about it until a few days ago though!
i was with my friend doing some halloween shopping, when this lady approached us! she was actually staring at us for quite a bit at first, and we were getting a little freaked out…!!!!! but as we were leaving, she finally walked towards us, and zoomed straight towards my friend.
she gave my friend a business card and told her to call the number! she said something about ‘face of a celebrity’ and just walked away. anyway, i took a look at the business card and i’m pretty sure it was from one of the axis label subsidiaries!
i guess the scouting rumors are true? but there’s so many scammers these days, you never know what to believe!!!
RUMOR: Did you hear about the Lime Entertainment Project?
POSTED BY USER JHEE2004 • AUGUST 8, 2024
the last time i posted about a lime entertainment rumor was TWO whole years ago!! and since then it's been TWELVE years since their last boy group!! i honestly had no idea what lime entertainment was thinking, but i'm sure they must've had their reasons right?
anyway, my uncle who's friends with a board member of a broadcasting channel heard through the grapevine about some new project that lime entertainment is gearing up for – and apparently it's got something to do with the boys! finally! i feel like the boy group market has been short of nothing but a desert lately and lime has always delivered! b.y.l, ri5e, lightspeed... all their songs are so peak!
i wonder what this project is though? would it be a new boy group? it's been five whole years since we've got a new debut from lime, and TWELVE since we've gotten a new boy group! i really really really hope it's a boy group, because if it's something that lime knows how to do – it's debuting a good group.
so far, their roster of male trainees look absolutely amazing as well. you have LEE NOEL and LEE SEOJUN from next gen season 1 – and seojun was even a mentor on the second season!! doesn't that show just how talented he is? and they also recently signed visual heartthrob RYU SIWOO and amazing vocalist RYEO "LUCIEL" JIHYUN from next gen season 2.
i wonder what other hidden male trainees they have for this project? ah, this is so exciting! i want to find out more about this project NOW!!! lime entertainment you better not disappoint me!
Successful Season 2 – The Winners Of Mnet’s Survival Audition Show NEXT GEN SEASON 2 Reveal The Companies They Have Signed With
TV/FILM • 1 hour ago
NEXT GEN has successfully wrapped up its SECOND SEASON with STEVIE PARK coming in FIRST PLACE. Similarly to the previous season, the top three winners have been revealed to be able to select which of the three companies they would like to sign with. After much anticipation, the companies have finally disclosed the final results that everyone has been waiting on.
The companies represented in NEXT GEN included three of the top businesses in the K-Entertainment industry, LIME ENTERTAINMENT, SR MEDIA, and STUDIO DELTA. Representatives from each of the companies have announced updates regarding the decisions of the top three winners, STEVIE PARK, KIM ARA, and CHOI HANGYEOL.
Winning third place overall in the program, CHOI HANGYEOL has been revealed to have signed to SR MEDIA.
Second-place winner KIM ARA was announced to have joined SR MEDIA.
Finally, winner STEVIE PARK was revealed to have joined STUDIO DELTA, after a successful second stint on the wildly popular survival show.
It has also been revealed that contracts have been offered to selected finalists. Representatives from LIME ENTERTAINMENT have shared that RYU SIWOO and RYEO “LUCIEL” JIHYUN will be joining them as trainees. SR MEDIA has welcomed JANG HYUNKI and HAN JUEUN. STUDIO DELTA is also now home to SONG JIAYI and SONG “JAY” JAEYOUNG.
it’s time for what everyone has been waiting for; the concert, the live finale. it’s only fitting that the last episode is accompanied by a flurry of live audience members, eager to cheer on the contestants who have made it so far. attendees usher in with newfound excitement, bringing along support items for their favorite contestants as they fight for the best spots around the stage. all the while, next gen’s distinguished intro starts playing on television screens across korea. even though tensions are rising, RHEE JIAN’s classic smile is what welcomes those tuning into the show.
“does everyone remember what’s at stake?” she asks the crowd, receiving a wave of answers, even though jian is not on stage yet. “that’s right! just like last season, the contestants who manage to reach the top three in ranks will be offered a trainee contract to any company they choose, whereas the runner-ups will be offered contracts to one of the three companies,” she explains, her voice playing as clips of different contestants practicing and performing flash through the screen. “this, of course, is determined based on audience votes and judges’ evaluations,” she continues, causing the audience to cheer for their favorite competitors in turn. “do your best, everyone! we’re excited to see the stage that you’ve prepared!”
on the top left corner of the screen, sits a badge that reminds everyone watching that this episode is being broadcasted live. after a momentary pause, claps and cheers resonate throughout the auditorium as jian finally shows herself on stage, greeting the NEXT GEN supporters with waves and smiles, taking her place in the center of the stage.
“welcome, everyone, to the finale of NEXT GEN’s second season!” she announces, awaiting for the next round of applause to end before she moves on. “don’t forget, your vote matters. please download the Mnet NEXT GEN Voting app onto your mobile device, if you haven’t already. on the screen, you can find instructions on how to vote for your favorite contestant! now, please be patient! live voting will open once the final performance comes to an end, remaining open for a total of twenty minutes. remember that, okay?” the crowd responds, and jian continues. “as mentioned before, the results of this competition will be decided by a combination of audience votes as well as the judges’ scores.”
after jian’s detailed explanation, the television screen shows a qr code link to the app store, along with instructions on how to download the app. it’s shown in the concert hall too, plastered on the large screens standing on either side of the stage.
“now, without further ado, it’s my pleasure to introduce you—for one last time—to the NEXT GEN stage, our company representatives… our lovely judges! please welcome YUNA, representing LIME ENTERTAINMENT; SEO RAN, ceo of SR MEDIA; and YOON JIHUN, ceo of STUDIO DELTA!”
with that, the judges come in, passing through a door that was hidden earlier once they’re announced. each one of them addresses the crowd with a smile and a wave, taking their seats afterwards. once they’ve settled into their seats, the crowd quiets down too.
“one last reminder! the contestants you’ll see on stage today are all battling it out for a trainee contract with one of three companies represented here today!” jian exclaims, triggering another round of cheers as the crowd gets hyped up for the competition. “which means, your votes will help shape the futures of three of the largest companies in our k-pop industry.”
she flashes the audience and the cameras a bright grin. “shall we get this show on the road?” she asks, causing another racket of screams and shouts to flourish. the answer is obvious, based on the automatic reaction of excitement. “in that case, let’s welcome all of our remaining contestants to the stage!”
jian leaves the stage for the moment, the lights dimming as she makes her exit. then, the intro of do better can be heard throughout the auditorium, followed by the change of the lights; a purple tint. as the introduction plays itself over and over, silhouettes of the remaining contestants are shown on stage. and thus, the audience erupts into another burst of cheers. each contestant greet their supporters with smiles; now they’ve seen the faces of those who have been backing them up all this time. it’s all the more real now, a grander stage than most of them have ever experienced, no doubt. surely, they can’t afford to give this energetic crowd any less.
after a moment on stage and a few final waves, the contestants return backstage, being replaced by jian. “another round of applause, for all of our next gen participants, please!” it doesn’t take long for the crowd to respond, enthusiastic and thrilled to witness what’s about to come. “thank you, everyone. this competition has been a rollercoaster, hasn’t it? although there has been many ups and downs, as well as unexpected turns, the contestants who remains should feel a sense of pride—they’ve made it so far, haven’t they? they’re brimming with talent, they have their future in this industry.”
that being said, the audience are clearly more interested in the performances itself. so, jian continues on, “now, let’s give it up for our first performing team!” as they wait for the first round of performers to get dressed, a vcr begins to play, playing on the big screens showcasing a practice room. this 5-person group make up the STARRY DREAM TEAM, who will be the first to perform.
they flashback in time, stopping at a certain point before the day of the concert. STEVIE, one of the darlings of this season, is seen on screen with SARANG, his mentor for this round, and the winner of last season. “do you think it’s kinda corny?” stevie asks, sounding a little embarrassed. “maybe i’m just shy. an inner monologue and my baby pics for everyone to witness?” it looks like stevie is describing an idea for the stage, but what’s with the lack of confidence? that doesn’t seem like the stevie everyone has come to know!
“what i like about this performance is that, as i said, everyone can relate to it,” like always, sarang remains encouraging. “we all have dreams, and we all want them to come true. the people watching seeing you as a baby, and then now performing on-stage, feel hopeful when they see how far you've come.” he follows that up with a question, “can i ask why this embarrasses you?”
“you know how turtles retract back into their shell when they get scared? it kinda makes me feel like that. i know it sounds stupid,” stevie concludes, a smile on his face, despite having said something a little self-deprecating. it’s the final episode, after all—are the nerves getting to stevie? fans whisper among themselves, worried for their favorite contestant.
they don’t dwell on that for too long, of course—how stevie ends up faring, will certainly be answered during the performance itself. instead, the screen switches to another pair: stevie stands alongside HYUNKI, who poses an unexpected question once they’ve caught up with their breaths from rehearsing their choreography, “did you ever think when you moved that this is where you’d end up?” are the members of this team feeling rather sentimental? that only makes sense, because they’re about to reach the end of their journey on next gen.
“i don't think i ever considered like...an idol in my future at all. but hey, things change. what about you?” stevie returns the question, the camera panning over to hyunki as the audience awaits hyunki’s answer.
“i knew i wanted to perform, but i wasn't sure how that would manifest yet. so maybe a little? if that makes sense,” hyunki admits.
“you're good at performing. maybe you really were just born for it.” stevie teases his teammate. “and well, now look at us! life comes at you fast.” it’s clear that the two are getting along, which is refreshing, remembering how the last episode ended on such a tense note in terms of teammates getting along.
despite stevie’s encouragement towards hyunki, the next scene shows hyunki looking a bit more serious, concentrated, going over his lines with SEOJUN. he looks unsure of himself, a cause for concern. “what are your initial thoughts?” hyunki asks his mentor, eager for feedback.
seojun is gentle when he speaks, a notable trait of his as coach. “make sure your voice is clear when it comes to the words and make your lines the best they can be. it will help you stand out,” seojun comments.
“i can do all that,” hyunki responds, nodding—perhaps, in a way, trying to convince himself. “i'll make sure to keep practicing until it gets better,” he assures. but what could have gotten hyunki’s confidence to sway, even if for a moment? as the invisible question lingers in everyone’s minds, a familiar voice starts playing in the background: “did you get complacent just because we gave you a good ranking a couple of times? don’t forget that hangyeol has been first place twice now. you may have been our male center, but you don’t have that much room to fall back on your laurels.” it’s the voice of the one and only studio delta ceo, jihun, who had much to say about the qualities hyunki lacked, compared to another contestant. the crowd reacts almost immediately, ahhs and boos as they watch the cilp.
it dies down though, when it fades to another scene, picturing hyunki with HANGYEOL, the aforementioned pair of rivals. or… not? “jang hyunki?” hangyeol calls out, polite, voice soft, not a hint of rivalry in his bones. “it’s me… i come bearing a peace offering…”
hyunki seems surprised. “this is nice, thank you, but why?”
“i know we're both dancers, and we're used to...cutthroat environments. but it didn't feel right going into the finals and working together without extending some kindness,” hangyeol explains himself, extending what seems to be an invisible olive branch in the form of a gift. “it's lemon, i think. i hope you like citrus. whatever happens this week, i hope we can be friends.” but then hangyeol’s tone changes, obviously an act, meant to flair up what sounds ridiculous to him; their makeshift rivalry. “if we have to be rivals for a few more days, so be it.” he winks at hyunki for good measure.
“this is gorgeous, i almost don't want to ruin it by eating. thank you, hangyeol,” hyunki seems touched by the act. “i really hope we can be friends, too.” hyunki is smiling, tucking away the treat box safely to the side. the crowd cheers, happy to see a new friendship blossoming, murmuring amongst themselves about how cute it is (and perhaps disapproving of jihun's words from the previous performance now).
with that interaction ending on a heartwarming note, the screen flips to a different pair—this time, it’s JUEUN and TOUMA, their first time on screen. “i’m starting to feel like eevee,” jueun says with a chuckle. those among the audience who understood the reference, followed along. “do you mind listening to it and telling me how it sounds? i feel like i’m reaching the note, but i probably need more power behind it, since it comes at the climax of the song.”
the audience whispers amongst themselves, wondering what note is so significant that it requires jueun’s utmost attention. a text on screen explains exactly what jueun is talking about: this time, the members are allowed to choose which of them are assigned with the high note of the song; a highlighted moment, all the more pressure. despite this burden of responsibility, jueun seems to be accepting the role with ease.
“it really feels like i've done almost everything i could as a performer during next gen,” jueun comments during her own scene, sitting in the familiar interview room. “dancing, rapping and now singing a high note. if i were to compare next gen to a game, it feels like i've finished every single quest!”
it returns to the practice room. “of course! i'd love to. it makes me feel a bit special too, getting to hear it firsthand before the audience does.” touma is smiling at his teammate, offering his support.
“for now, i'm just trying to get the note down itself. i feel like i need a little more support. like i can reach the note, but i'm not sure if it sounds powerful enough.” jueun sings the high note, but it’s muted for the audience—as usual, it’s saved for the performance itself. the crowd is a little disappointed, wanting a spoiler, but the producers aren’t going to give them any.
“i think you’ll do just fine! you pulled off everything last time to my knowledge. weren’t you also kind of new to rapping? but you did so well rapping in your previous team! i’m sure the exact same thing will happen with this high note,” touma continues to encourage, never letting up with his compliments. “maybe you can position your head a bit? i read that if you point your chin down, it can help you reach a higher note with more ease,” he suggests. whether jueun accomplishes what she has set out to do though, remains a mystery for now.
jueun isn’t only focused on that note, though. naturally, there are more lines than just that one high note. now that they’re at the end of the road, they’ll have to make sure everything is up to standard. stevie returns to the screen alongside jueun this time, lyric sheet in hand. he stands up, taking in a deep breath before he proceeds to sing: “if i reach out my hand a little more, somehow i think i can reach it.” after taking a sip of his bottle, stevie repeats his lines. then, he analyzes himself, “i think my beginning sounds a little weird, but i can't tell if it's just because i don't have the music leading me there.”
jueun seems to agree. “i agree. the beginning is a little shaky, and i feel like if you aren't focused enough, you might just end up missing the first note.” she looks down at her own lyric sheet. “okay, do you mind listening to me this time? i don't want to mess up this beginning because it's the start of this whole performance.”
“it’s kind of exciting, it’s giving trustfall energy.” stevie comments, taking over the screen with hangyeol this time. “and then we all lift our hands up at the same moment, i think that’s pretty nice.” the two dancers are working on their steps.
“don’t drop me, ok stevie?” hangyeol’s accent seem to peek out a little, even more so as he continues on. “how do you say ‘don’t drop me’ in english?”
“oh. uh, don’t drop me,” stevie says with more ease, answering hangyeol’s question. “i won’t let you fall, i promise!”
“do not deurop me stevie park!” hangyeol echoes, which brings about a laugh from the audience watching, endeared by how well the teammates are getting along.
the team members are working on their technical skills, brushing up what isn’t familiar to them. on the other side though, there seems to be someone who’s struggling with something more interpersonal; their mindset. touma’s unreadable expression is what’s pictured in the frame. he speaks, letting out a glimpse of his thoughts. “i think... my stage presence is kind of lacking, right now.” he says, honest. “changing that so late in the game significantly doesn't feel realistic, but i don't want to drag my team down either. i'd hope to at least... match them? be balanced? i want to at least be able to stand alone so my teammates don't have to worry about me.”
as it slowly zooms out of touma’s complicated expression, it is revealed that he has been talking to sarang this entire time, one of his mentors. sarang seems to be taking in each word that touma has said, considering his words very carefully before he proceeds with his advice. “can i ask you something? when you perform, do you feel confident? like, when the lights hit you, and you're in the center, do you feel powerful and in control, or do you feel unsure?”
“now that you bring it up, i think the most confident i've been throughout this entire show was during my audition. and it just started... getting chipped away,” touma says aloud, clearly deflated from the pressures. it’s bound to happen though, especially now that they’ve reached the final episode.
whatever wisdom sarang bestowed upon touma, is not shown in the vcr itself. instead, touma is seen with hyunki next. “even if you happen to hate everything about this song, you can't let the audience know that,” hyunki says to touma. another sound in the background plays: “you looked like you were fighting the concept more than you were living it,” yuna had said, a critique that touma seems to be thinking about now.
“there's seniors who had admitted to not being the biggest fans of some of their own songs, right? but you can't tell when they perform. we just have to find a way to get you there, or at least working towards that,” hyunki continues.
touma lets out a sigh, “i thought i hid it pretty well. i was having fun doing puzzle eventually, especially because we had a fun premise, but that still doesn't exude... sexiness. i do like our concept this time though,” touma reassures.
“what's something to makes you happy, but won't distract you too much?” hyunki asks afterwards.
touma doesn’t take too long to find his answer. “what makes me happy... dancing, i suppose.”
“liking the concept is a great start! we can work with that!” hyunki replies, happy to have found some footing. that seems to be what they’ll be working on once again, like they had in their previous team.
speaking of concepts, jueun is seen once more going over the concept with sarang. a fitting choice, seeing sarang’s status as sr media trainee. “the song is very mellow and dreamy, and it's definitely hopeful; both things are true. it's sort of like when you're a kid and you're in your bedroom late at night, and you're looking out of the window and wishing on stars in the sky… there's no one there but you, the moon, and her stars. it's like you're telling her secrets." as sarang goes on, not only is he painting a picture for jueun on screen, he’s also giving hints as to what the audience can expect in this performance.
“i'll try to keep that in mind while i perform. how do you think that should be delivered when it comes to expressions? i feel like expressing that dreaminess without making it look exaggerated is the most difficult,” jueun remarks, clearly concerned for the performance ahead. there is no reassurance from sarang’s end though, instead that is where the vcr ends, leaving an air of mystery.
after a moment of silence, the lights on stage turn on once again. STARRY DREAM TEAM stands atop the stage in their outfits, ready to begin their live performance. jueun, the only girl in the team, opens up the song with her lines; albeit, this isn’t anything new to her. the message of the song is clear, a dream above their heads, reaching out for what seems to be the unattainable sky—and each member embodies that idea to the best of their abilities. stevie comes up right after, moving into position with fluidity; as expected of this dancer! the crowd seems to think. he makes room for touma to slide into place, bringing that same sense of fluidity into the choreography. hyunki, too, keeps up with the momentum.
it continues on, the cameras giving a moment to each contestant. everyone portrays a soft expression, wistful but hopeful and determined. hangyeol, in particular, makes a point to enforce eye contact not with just the camera, but also his teammates. the bridge approaches steadily, but the members are ready for it, having practiced with their all in the aforementioned few days. the lift seems to be the highlight of the song, not to be beaten by jueun’s high note though—the contestant belting it out for the audience to hear and witness. hyunki and touma sing their last lines, closing the song with ease. hangyeol steps forward slowly, moving into position, once again locking eyes with the camera. they all finish with their ending poses; a sentimental end to an emotional performance. it makes one wonder—have they reached their dreams? are they on the right path? every member gets their ending fairy shot, fans screaming in excitement as the first performance comes to a close. it takes a while for the hype to die down, the names of each member screamed out pointedly. there’s a few sniffles among the crowd too, no doubt brought about by the team members.
once the audience starts to quiet down, the judges begin to impart the members with their final thoughts.
“ah, there’s more pressure for even us being in front of a live audience, isn’t there?” begins, smiling at her fellow judges before sending the same expression to the contestants waiting for the critique on stage. “how are you feeling after seeing the first performance, jihun?”
studio delta’s ceo, notoriously strict as he is, seems to be putting on his best behavior with so many eyes on them. “why are you asking me and not ran?” he accuses his fellow judge, though there’s a smile on his lips betraying the lighthearted nature of his commentary so far. “i’m having a great time. you know i’m hard on them to bring out their full potential, but it’s not like there’s going to be another episode after this. i can be a little nicer.”
“is that so?” ran smiles, “i’ll believe it when i see it. but enough about us, i’m sure team starry dream is impatient enough now.”
“that’s right,” yuna draws the attention back to the team in front of them. “where should we start? well, i suppose overall, you may have had a bit of an advantage with the song you were given by the audience. starry dream is a perfect fit for the finale isn’t it?” she glances to her fellow judges, who nod their agreement. murmurs of approval grumble through the live audience as well. “and i think that’s why it might have been easier for you all to tap into your emotions with this performance. even touma seemed to be more comfortable with this concept.” she flashes the contestant in question a reassuring smile.
ran makes a point to stretch around in her seat, looking around at the crowds of fans surrounding the stage. “i think i heard a few sniffles in the crowd during the performance,” she observes. “ah, there-” the cameras zoom in on a young fan with tears blurring her eyes “-someone please give her a tissue! and share with your neighbors around you if you see anyone in need. starry dream is surprisingly emotional despite being an upbeat song, especially in the context of the finale. but being able to connect so intensely with the audience? that’s an amazing accomplishment for sure.”
“that should be expected though, shouldn’t it?” jihun purses his lips together. “some of the highest ranking contestants in the competition were all in this team. i mean, hyunki and hangyeol have both placed first at different points in the competition. steven is the most experienced contestant of anyone. if they didn’t put on a good performance, i would have had a lot more to say.”
the two female judges can’t help but give jihun a look that communicates what they cannot say: we know.
“stevie,” jihun continues, addressing the contestant directly, “you’ve continued to improve not just since the last time we saw you, but throughout this season as well. while i maintain that you lacked maturity in the previous season, you’ve certainly reinvented yourself this year. i hope that you continue this trend of growth. it’ll serve you well going forward. if you make it farther.” as always, the judges are careful not to reveal too much so early in the show.
“i also want to congratulate jueun,” ran reveals with a smile, “we’ve thrown a lot at you in these last several weeks, haven’t we? and yet you always managed to pull through and put on an amazing performance with a smile on your face. i’m sure you complained and probably cursed us behind our backs but you never let it show on stage. your professionalism and talent is better than some idol groups currently promoting.”
“and where would we be without our rivals, hyunki and hangyeol?” yuna smiles, “though, that was all manufactured by jihun, wasn’t it? i’m glad that the both of you didn’t let his goading get to you and were able to become friends. competition can bring out the best in us, but it can also bring out our worst. you both did excellently to not let the pressure get to you or break your composure, even when studio delta’s ceo was doing his best to make it difficult. congratulations on another successful performance, both of you.”
“there’s not much we can say any of you did wrong,” ran continues. “it’s our last episode together. you’ve all grown immensely over the last several weeks and it’s been our pleasure to help you grow. of course you’re not perfect, but next gen was always about testing your potential. you’ve all proven that to us by now.”
“but we can’t sign all of you,” jihun brings in the reality check. “it’s not healthy for a company to bring in too much new blood at once and frankly, not everyone is going to be cut out for our training programs long-term at this time. but we’ll make those decisions later, after we’ve seen the rest of the performances.”
“in the meantime, please be proud of everything you’ve accomplished and the performance you’ve given,” yuna instructs the contestants. “celebrate your victories backstage. we’ll see you again soon.”
starry dream team is gracefully dismissed from the stage.
the contestants begin to step down from the stage, returning to the back. jian steps forward once more, ready to introduce the next team. “our next performance is ANTI-HERO TEAM!” she takes a moment to let the audience cheer, before moving forward. “i wonder how they prepared for tonight. let’s take a look!”
as the close-up of jian’s face fades away within the scope of the huge monitors, it is replaced by a shot of the practice room. the first two members shown are ARA and YUWOL, seemingly getting themselves ready for… something? the two of them have grim expressions on their faces, what could be so challenging for the both of them?
it doesn’t remain a mystery for too long. “so a series of burpees and then a quick rest period, and repeat. somehow it sounds easy, but i think it'll be anything but,” ara speaks as she’s tying her shoelaces. it’s serious, for the two of them. “should we do this together or alternate?” she asks her partner for the day.
“i think we can just do it together,” yuwol answers. then, he asks, “okay, you ready?”
“no,” ara responds as she starts getting into position. “but i have to be ready. i can do this, we can do this,” she assures the both of them, even though she’s wailing. she reaches her fist, offering a fist bump in an attempt to pump the both of them up. as yuwol is getting into position himself, he doesn’t leave ara hanging, bumping their fists together. it’s a cute display of friendship, and the audience coos. “we 'simply' need to complete the set, then we'll catch our breath for a quick break and see about the second set. alright?”
“you’re right, all we need to do is complete one set,” yuwol is quick to answer.
“ok, let’s go… three… two… one…” ara counts down, and they begin—it looks like the two of them are working on their stamina, back to basics. once they’re done, the two of them are trying to catch their breaths. it’s just the first set, so they seem to be fine so far. “okay… that… that wasn’t too bad. right? thirty second break then onto the second set?”
“yeah, definitely need that thirty second break,” yuwol replies in between breaths. the camera zooms in on both their lightly flushed faces, a rather comedic image. a significant portion of the audience laughs. but as the camera zooms out into a wider shot of the practice room, it’s clear the two of them are still determined to continue with their exercise, knowing it’d be fruitful.
it seems that the members of ANTI-HERO TEAM are polishing the basics, which is nothing surprising. now that they’re in the finale, their basics must be perfect, after all. CHAERIN, in particular, is focusing on just that with all the members. she puts emphasis on their technical skills, seen in the way she’s coaching everyone. the first person she’s seen working with on screen though, is JIAYI.
“you’re both the opening and ending of this song, jiayi!” chaerin notes aloud, seemingly excited for the contestant. “the lines aren’t much, but they are pretty important. i’m sure you’ll do fine, but just make sure to keep that in mind.”
“i am! i’m excited about it,” jiayi smiles, not pressured by her assigned lines. “i’ve been working on my expressions during those parts. i want to make sure my face doesn’t look too… bland.”
“i think it’s be hard for you to look bland,” chaerin comments, but doesn’t completely wave off jiayi’s concerns. “was there anything other than your expressions you found yourself struggling with?”
“obviously i’ve been working on improving my vocals. but i’d like to hear your thoughts on how i sing,” jiayi tells chaerin. “if that’s okay, of course.” the two of them continue to work on the vocal aspect of the song, although they aren’t the only one to do so.
DOHYUN also helped the members with their vocals. in this scene though, ara and jiayi had left already, perhaps to work on other things. yuwol, on the other hand, had just arrived. “tea?” dohyun offered as yuwol steps into the room.
“i’d like that, thank you. i hope you don’t mind me rambling as you make our tea,” yuwol says, half a warning. but then again, surely dohyun has no reason to refuse. yuwol continues on. “the feedback i had gotten about my vocals was that i relied too much on stylization. honestly, i didn’t realize that was the case until it was pointed out to me. they might be right. how do i… tone it down?” yuwol asks, seeking dohyun’s more expert guidance.
“what’s your background in singing?” dohyun decides to start with that, searching for more information. “i think going over the basics and technique will help with that, so we can start there.”
“i had some training back then, but mostly as an opera singer. my parents kinda put me into anything classical music related until something hits. that ended up being violin, so i didn't continue my professional training. i do still sing for the choir though, occasionally. at church, i mean,” yuwol describes. “i think i know the basics, at the top of my head. but linking it to the performance and the dance—yeah, i can see why i ended up relying on stylization.”
that seems to be enough information for dohyun to work with; the pair begin to work on yuwol’s lines, going over them.
singing isn’t the only thing yuwol is focusing on though, seeing as how he was called out for another aspect of his technical skills. chaerin comes on screen yet again, it’s her turn to work with yuwol. the contestant had been going through his parts of the choreography for chaerin to comment on. “how much do you stretch before you begin dancing? your moves look a little choppy, and i think a good place to start would be to warm up your body a bit more before you begin working on the choreography,” chaerin says.
“i've done some of the stretching exercises you've shown me before. should i do more?” yuwol is looking at himself in the mirror, sweat on his forehead. he seems to be taking a moment to analyze himself, pointing out what’s missing and what went wrong. “i might be... struggling with balancing everything. performing, keeping my facial expression in mind, reaching my notes when it comes to singing... and then, dancing. i was more fluid when i performed cake. thanks to you, that is. but with nonstop, i was too focused on... living the concept. on my face, minding my gestures... how i should perform. that may be why... my technical performance skills suffered a bit.”
chaerin seems to understand, but first she says, “that was all you. anybody can give out advice, but not everybody can embody it.” she keeps going, though. “that sounds like something everybody goes through, though. i remember struggling to find a balance between everything as well. just keep in mind that, at the end of the day, your skills are really what matters. you want to get the basics down because without that, no matter how hard you try to pull off a concept, it won't work out. you've probably heard this way too many times by this point, but try to focus on your singing and dancing first. repeat it over and over again until your body and mind has memorized everything and then move onto the other aspects of the performance.” as expected of a lime entertainment trainee, her words ring true, a perfect representation of the company she is signed to.
yuwol sits in the interview room for a moment on screen. then, the interviewer asks him a question: “how do you feel about the idol life now?” at that, yuwol laughs. “i think it's nice. it was obvious, wasn't it? how little i knew about this side. but it's fun, performing like this was fun. i didn't realize i'd find myself captivated by this life, but i was. and honestly? dancing is starting to become a hobby of mine. i hope to pick it back up, even if i don't get signed through this show.”
the screen comes back to the practice room. “that's true. i suppose... if i get the routine down, as well as my lines, the concept would come as second nature? we'll be using a silk cloth as a prop too,” yuwol muses aloud, which has the audience murmuring to one another. a silk cloth? how would that look? there is no answer at this time. “thank you, again, for watching over me. let me try rehearsing my parts in the chorus, tell me if something is out of place,” yuwol requests, before going over the choreography once more.
the audience are still caught up on the mention of a silk cloth. luckily, their curiosity can be somewhat satiated as the camera flits towards the next pair. the two of them are holding the silk cloth in question—will this be part of the performance? a prop?
“i think the dynamic of the team was nice,” jiayi’s voice can be heard as the scene in the practice room keeps playing. “we all had good energy and worked hard towards making our performance a notable one. i'm glad that i could finally meet ara, as i've had my eye on her for a while.”
“you know, i did rhythmic gymnastics growing up. this isn’t the same, obviously, but it reminded me of the ribbons we used to use for the performances and stuff. i’m glad we get to use such pretty props for the finale,” jiayi remarks, excited at the idea.
“i grazed the gymnastic route, but i ended up going into dance instead as a kid. but i can respect that- it probably helps a lot with this choreography.” it seems the two have something in common to discuss! “i haven’t used this before so if you had some recommendations or suggestions for the technique, for maneuvering the cloth so we are all in sync…. i want our lines to be crisp and clean.” after making that statement, ara attempts to whip the cloth. “what do you think? too much?”
jiayi, on the other hand, runs her fingers along the strip of fabric. “i think controlling the cloth will be difficult as sometimes it can have a mind of it's own. try to think of it as an extension of your arm, not a separate entity.”
ara seems impressed by the comment, eager to put it into practice. so, she does. “okay, let me try it and see if it is better... wait. that looks better, right? or was that a fluke. let me try it a few more times so its not merely a coincidence.” she incorporates that into a part of her dance next, with better results—although it’s mostly cropped out, so as to surprise the audience for later. “oh, we better try to do it in sync too. let’s…. try it in a line so we can see how it lines up when it is in the air.” it sounds like a complicated maneuver, the image hangs in the air, leaving people to wonder how it’ll look on the stage itself.
chaerin is seen on screen once more, ever the active coach. “how are you feeling about this song, ara? there isn't anything for you to watch or listen to beforehand other than the demos.”
“i know. i.... want to do the song justice, and its nice that we aren't focusing too much on the creativity aspect, but that means we have to do our best because it comes down to how well we execute the song as a whole.” the contestant sounds slightly troubled. “i want to start off the song with good energy and keep it heightened throughout the entire performance. but i also don't want it to seem unnatural or like i am not trying. why is the balance so difficult when trying to finesse everything? i don't know if i have the leader mentality there, but i am game for helping everyone in the group. collaboration. communication....”
listening to everything patiently, chaerin waits a moment until ara finished before speaking up. “that's what performing is all about. finding the right balance of everything. let's take it one step at a time, okay? first, make sure you have the song and choreography down to a t. at this point in the competition, it's going to be even more obvious if you're lacking in the most basic aspects of a performance. then we can work on putting your own flair into the performance. how does that sound?” it’s similar to the advice that she had given yuwol earlier.
“that's true. i don't want to rush myself and go a few steps forward or backwards, all because the potential anxiety of the finale is here.” it’s a statement that the other contestants can certainly sympathize with, the stakes are higher because it’s the finale after all. ara’s worries aren’t unfounded.
the next clip shows ara in the interview room. a disembodied voice asks: “what was the greatest challenge during this mission?” ara contemplates for a second, before continuing with her answer, “that this was not a cover, but that we could make it our own. it is a privilege and honor, but also a challenge to tackle. i hope that as a unit, we were able to encompass all of the members as fitting this concept and song as our own. so that in the future when anyone performs this song again, they'll think back to this performance instead and remember us."
eventually, the screen fades to black after a few more scenes of the team practicing together along with their mentors are played. the audience are left with bated breaths before the lights come up on stage once more, shining upon the ANTI-HERO TEAM, taking their positions as they wait for the music to begin.
powerful, elegant and poised. eye-catching, alluring. those are all terms that can be used to describe the song assigned to this team. there’s certainly many powerful moments, emphasized by the edm music in the background, giving a more thrilling and bewitching aura throughout the entire performance. each team member seem to embody all that is required to carry such a tense song. it opens with jiayi, incorporating the silk cloth as she dances, waving it around with the practiced grace and flexibility that she has had since her days as a gymnast. the others don’t fall behind though, it’s clear that they’ve practiced together to gracefully twirl and twist the prop they had in hand.
expressions is key to a song like this, and the members aren’t lacking on that regard either. even as ara is lifted into the air by her two teammates, she manages to keep an air of allure and mystery, eye contact with both judges and audience. yuwol, who has been praised for his acting before, is back in his element of a more thrilling song choice. he, too, fixes the camera with a gaze that’s intense, mysterious, and enticing. there’s an emphasis on his eyes, along with a confident curl to the corner of his lips. all the members have managed to convey the concept of the song through not only facial expressions, but their gestures and movements as well. the choreography remains clean and crisp as the performance progresses, coming to an end with jiayi’s lines once more. one last flip of the cloths, and then it’s over. the members make use of the silk cloth in their ending fairy poses, and the cameras made sure to take a shot of each one of them. neither one of them step out of character, until it’s truly the end of the performance.
the song closes, and the audience cheers with much enthusiasm, shouting out every member’s name. it was silence up to this point—did the thrilling and tense vibes of the performance shine through? it must have, because the audience are impressed. the camera pans towards the judges, awaiting their commentary.
ran is the first to speak this time, smiling into the microphone and at her fellow judges as she speaks. “anti-hero has a very different vibe than starry dream, doesn’t it? we planned for this, but seeing the performances back to back really puts it into perspective, doesn’t it?”
“it does,” yuna agrees. “while team starry dream had the advantage of a perfect thematic song, anti-hero had props incorporated into their choreography. it made for a very eye-catching stage and presented a new challenge to our contestants for their final performance. but i think they did well?” she poses it as a question, waiting for the audience to roar their approval. she smiles; of course an idol would know how to work the crowd. “you all did well,” she addresses the contestants directly now, “learning a completely original song from scratch is nothing to sneeze at. where your seniors can advise you on how to better perform existing songs, even they might be at a loss for how to show something unique. i think you had the appropriate power throughout the performance and really made us believe that you were anti-heroes here to change the world.”
“i think it’s the details i was most impressed with,” ran adds, “right down to how you ended the performance, incorporating your props into your final poses. there wasn’t a single movement or expression that looked out of place on anyone. would you say that your final performance here was the best you’ve ever run through the song? because i would absolutely believe it. i’m not sure how it could be better.” she smiles warmly, clearly impressed with the performance.
jihun, as reluctant as he is to ever give compliments, even manages a smile. “to be honest, i thought you all would struggle with the props. only one of you really had experience with something like this, right? it’s not easy to learn a new skill on the fly. but you proved me wrong. your adaptability and ability to learn quickly should be commended.”
“yuwol, i can tell that you focused a lot on improving your fundamentals. i think this was the strongest performance you’ve given us to date, and i want to make sure you knew that we noticed,” yuna addresses the contestant individually, “you’ve always done well at taking our criticism to heart and acting on it, which is an incredibly valuable trait as a trainee and an idol. your classical music background helps with that, doesn’t it?”
she doesn’t really wait for an answer; instead she’s interrupted by jihun. “ara as well. you’ve done well throughout this competition but you especially shined in this performance. you’re a decent singer and a better dancer and those skills have only improved during your time training with us. your stage presence as well continues to impress. i know not everyone agrees with me, but i don’t believe that’s a skill that can be taught, it’s a raw, natural talent. congratulations.” high praise from the strictest judge, to be sure.
“jiayi has also continued to impress,” ran points out, “your stage presence and confidence might be some of the best in the competition and your skills have continued to improve throughout your time with us. we were right to trust you with opening the song as well as closing it; you know how to make an impression. ah, deciding the final results is going to be difficult!” the woman exclaims.
“thank you for another amazing performance. we’ll see you at the end of the program.” jihun dismisses the team from the stage.
the show is nearing its end. one team remains, and the tensions are rising higher than ever. perhaps because once this performance concludes, the season would have run its course; finally. a few of the fans seem disgruntled by this fact too, awaiting jian’s announcement.
“before we proceed with our last performance of the night—and of next gen season two, in general,” she takes a pause, hearing the herd of sullen groans of the crowd, although the smile doesn’t fade away from her face. “we’d like to take a second to remind everyone, including those of you at home, to make sure you have the voting app downloaded! once again, thank you for the love and support you’ve shown all of us—contestants, judges, mentors and coaches, staff, and myself, throughout the entirety of this season. without all of you, we wouldn’t be here today, performing for you!”
one final cheer, one last hurrah—and then, it’s time for the final group to make its appearance. “i don’t want to keep you all waiting, so… allow me to introduce to you, BANG TEAM!”
even though the show is on its last leg, this being the last group to perform, the crowd’s passion and energy have yet to die down. that being said, the contestants don’t immediately take up the stage. just as usual, the focus is pulled towards the two large screens first and foremost, showing a rather detailed glimpse into the team’s preparation for tonight’s performance.
but instead of showing members of the team itself, not even the mentors—what sits in the middle of the screen is an empty jar. it’s sat atop a table, no explanation whatsoever. eventually though, the camera starts panning out, and finally faces of two of the BANG TEAM members can be seen. it’s INHO and JAEYOUNG.
“oh, great.” jaeyoung speaks up first, eyes focused on the jar placed in the center of the practice room. “i didn’t think she’d actually do it.” who is she? whose idea was this mysterious jar? what was it for? the audience seem to be asking those questions, and jaeyoung at least answers one of those questions. “i mean i don’t really swear as much as you and siwoo probably do. but it's also a filter jar? i have no idea how that's supposed to work.” sure, that’s an explanation, but there’s still an air of confusion among the audience. “i wonder how weird this must look to the curious viewers,” jaeyoung says aloud, which is funny now—considering the live audience are hearing this too, just as curious. “do you think we can last a day without putting anything in this jar?”
inho doesn’t seem as surprised as jaeyoung is though, having fully expected this. “hey,” inho swats jaeyoung’s arm, most likely because jaeyoung had called him out on the swearing. there’s no malice between the two though, they’re clearly getting along well, everything said in jest. “i can, i’m a grown adult capable of self-control. you? doubt it.”
jaeyoung laughs, followed by a scandalous gasp that’s clearly fake. “what are you trying to say? that i'm childish? a.... brat?” he turns to inho. “okay, i'm determined to keep this jar empty today!” he imitates a fighting! gesture. “i’m also an adult, after all. twenty…ish of age!” jaeyoung announces, which only causes the crowd to laugh in unison. after all, he isn’t making a very convincing adult in the moment.
inho seems to share that same sentiment. “twenty…ish? you sure about that adult statement?” the crowd erupts into another bout of chuckles and giggles.
once again, the camera zooms in closer onto the jar. only this time, it doesn’t stay empty for long. suddenly, there’s 10,000 won placed into it. did jaeyoung fail after all? no, that doesn’t seem to be the case, because as the camera zooms back out, the hand that had put the money in was SIWOO’s, not jaeyoung’s.
“i’m putting this in here, because i don't want to waste my time walking back and forth when i could spend it focusing on practice,” siwoo explains to inho. “better safe than sorry. are you going to put any in advance?”
“no? i don't have extra money to waste. i'm just not gonna do anything to require money be put in at all,” inho replies. “are you planning to do something wild that requires you to put the money in the jar now that you have?” inho questions, it didn’t feel right.
“not really. i mean i’d rather not. i have a tendency to be a little self deprecating though, and i didn’t feel like wasting time going back and forth putting in the money. so just in case.” siwoo began stretching as he speaks. “i do hope i get it right this time, though. we need to make sure we win,” he smiles, turning to inho.
inho nods, understanding. “i do that too sometimes. it's something we both need to work on.” inho joins siwoo on stretching, getting ready for practice. “we need to work hard.”
there’s no verbal answer to who exactly came up with the jar, but the next scene switches to the face of a familiar mentor; pointed, sharp, someone who doesn’t mince her words—NAYOUNG. ah, perhaps it was her? that seems to be the correct assumption (after all, who else would it be but her?), seeing as she’s about to bring about another idea to the team.
as the camera pans out from nayoung’s stern expression, there’s the visual image of the entirety of BANG TEAM, mentors included, sitting around in a large circle. for a moment, the camera simply flips between the expressions of each member, a rather tense atmosphere in the air. notably, siwoo and JIHYUN, who pointedly had a rather strained relationship in the previous team, are seated next to one another. even more surprisingly, jaeyoung and REN ended up side-by-side as well. was this on purpose? it doesn’t seem like it, because the text on the screen explains that the seating arrangement was chosen at random. and yet, it seems to fit all too perfectly. as the camera returns to nayoung’s face, it lingers for a moment too long in silence, as if questioning whether she had a hand in making the arrangements.
but what is this circle for, anyway? nayoung doesn’t waste any more time in answering that question. “okay, let's go left in the circle. say something nice about the person to your left, and share something you're proud of yourself for related to next gen,” she simultaneously reminds the members and explains the activity to the audience. “i'll start. i'm proud that i was able to help two teams take first place this season. and of the team members, of course.” nayoung is demonstrating first. next, it looks like she’ll be saying something nice about jihyun. i like that jihyun is good at handling criticism and applying it quickly, even if it's hard to hear. okay, your turn,” nayoung says, referring to jihyun.
for a moment, it cuts to nayoung in the interview room. “i believe siwoo and jihyun have problems with one another, and then…we saw what happened between jaeyoung and ren last episode. siwoo and ren have problems too, i believe. tensions were high and it carried into our practice time. it was hard for everyone to be in sync and actually perform as a team, at least in my opinion, so i tried to do something about it.” as she speaks, a few cuts from the previous episodes shows the strange interaction between siwoo and jihyun as well as the altercation between jaeyoung and ren. nayoung had mentioned something brewing between siwoo and ren though—was there no footage of that? no, there doesn’t seem to be any.
either way, the exercise continues on. it’s jihyun’s turn. he takes a moment to think of something to say, when it comes to being proud of himself. however, he does come up with something. “i’m proud of stepping outside my comfort zone. despite how i look, it’s really hard for me to ask around for help but i managed to do that with almost everyone in my last team.” but now, he has to say something nice about siwoo. “siwoo is really great at tying ties. yes, that’s it~…. ah, of course i’m just kidding!” in the corner of the screen, a small clip of siwoo putting a tie on jihyun is being played. “i really like how outspoken you are. you’re honest and have the courage to say what’s on your mind, i admire that part of you. your turn, siwoo.”
once again, the camera focuses on siwoo’s face, trying to catch his expression. from siwoo’s side, it begins with a laugh. “haha, thanks jihyun. i've been told that i can be a little blunt, so i'm glad that you appreciate it. you're really such a great person.” as siwoo starts speaking, laughter can be heard in the background—in the corner of the screen, jaeyoung is pictured, the culprit behind the laughter. was there something funny in the things siwoo is saying? jaeyoung doesn’t explain himself though, instead siwoo continues speaking. “i'm... proud of... trying something new. i never really thought of myself as someone who'd perform on stage like this so, uh. yeah. i'm proud of myself for having made it this far actually. haha.”
once siwoo turns his attention to inho, it seems to be a lot easier for him. “i think inho's a good singer. when i first saw him, i didn't think he'd have the lungs to reach those notes but he does. you look really cool when you sing.”
before it continues onto the team building exercise, the scene changes for a moment, this time focused between inho and ren—since siwoo had mentioned inho’s talents in singing, that must be what this clip will be about. a text on screen explains that for this team, inho is the one tasked with the high note after approval from ren. inho finishes a run for ren to hear, singing as he moves to the choreography. “so, what do you think?” he asks ren.
“it’s good,” ren replies with a relatively neutral expression and a leveled tone. “make sure you're not straining on the high note. i know you're out of breath toward the end, but you don't want to hurt yourself. if you need to, you can probably step out of the choreo a few moves sooner. our seniors do it all the time.” ren goes through his notes, before adding another layer to his advice. “when you're singing with the other members, watch your tone. you can stylize your featured moments all you want, but standing out in group moments, vocally, can be something singers like you and me get called out for. it's something i'm still working on too, to be honest.”
inho takes that advice without complaint, repeating them. “don't strain, possibly step out sooner or work on breath control, got it. yeah, i will keep that in mind.”
the scene returns to the team building exercise, the clip adding more weight to siwoo’s compliment towards inho. the camera catches inho’s reaction to that, which is a small smile, although it’s followed by an amused look directed at the way siwoo had formulated the compliment itself. nonetheless, inho accept the compliment. “why thank you siwoo.” that signifies the end of siwoo’s turn, and the start of inho’s. “something i'm proud of is also being able to step out of my comfort zone, try new things, and end up getting to this point in the competition. i wasn't actually the one who signed myself up for the audition, it was my friends. the only reason i showed up was with their very....relentless, encouragement. i'm happy i did though. i hadn't considered being an idol before but now it's something i've put a lot of thought into and realize i enjoy.”
inho turns to his left, where jaeyoung sits. “oh, jaeyoung…” his tone is teasing at first, but it does shift into something genuine. “i admire your determination and ability to have fun. you weren't kidding when you said you were an enigma, and i enjoy getting to watch it unfold.”
“woah, i wasn’t expecting that! usually, that's the trait people loathe from me.” jaeyoung is laughing once more, and the camera switches for a second to nayoung’s expression—if looks could kill, then nayoung’s glare directed towards jaeyoung surely would. but jaeyoung doesn’t pay it any mind, because it’s his turn to speak now.
“i'm really proud of what i did in my don't call me team, even if we didn't win. that retro mad max concept was really fun to do too, and that's the first time i got along with.. literally every person i was talking to. i never made that many positive connections in one sitting.” no one seems surprised by this face though. but most of the audience aren’t exactly eager to listen to jaeyoung dissect himself—instead, they’re wondering what jaeyoung would say about ren, silence permeating in the air.
jaeyoung turns to ren with a smile. “you're talented. when you're actually mentoring us i can tell that you have a good voice too. it's obvious you're gifted, but you clearly also polished your skills to reach that level. so, yeah, i guess that's what i'd list down. it's not like we got to sit down and talk for me to know more about you. or the better side of your personality.”
now, the cameras focus is on ren, who has his eyes locked onto siwoo for most of the exercise, the latter not returning that same energy. in fact, siwoo doesn’t spare ren so much as a glance. visibly, ren’s eyes had narrowed, surprisingly not from jaeyoung’s words though. as jaeyoung speaks his piece, ren’s scowl seem to slowly ease away—only for a moment. because jaeyoung’s words still carry unpleasant implications, whether he meant it or not. still, ren takes it well; perhaps the more mature of the two. “thanks. it's mostly practice. listening when my mentors tell me how to improve. staying humble. keeping my ego in check.” it’s obvious that he’s speaking about jaeyoung, but jaeyoung doesn’t exactly react, letting ren talk. on the other hand, it’s nayoung who reacts, looking a little disappointed at ren’s words.
ren turns away from jaeyoung then, speaking to seira next. “seira-ssi, i admire your determination. it can be really discouraging when the powerful people you look up to look you in the eye and tell you everything you need to change in front of the world. it'd be really easy to give up in the face of that. a lot of people do. but you haven't yet, and that's really what'll keep you going here.” belatedly, he adds something he’s proud of, like it’s an afterthought. “oh. i forgot my thing. um. i guess i'm proud of that in myself too. i've had a lot of people tell me i'd never amount to anything. including myself. but i'm here anyway. so. yeah.”
now, ren’s turn is over, so the camera switches to seira, her expression captured in the middle of the frame. ren’s words seem to make seira emotional, a single tear in the corner of her eyes. “ah ren-ssi, you’re too nice,” she says. “i really needed to hear that, getting scolded so much by the judges have been hard, but i won’t give up!” as the camera lingered on her face, the judges’ words can be heard in the background: “your expressions were inconsistent with the vibes of the performance, your performance itself seemed stiff and robotic, and you keep saying you’ll improve your skills and yet we hardly see a difference from when you first started this competition. i know you worked hard, but it seems that you lack focus and direction,” yuna critiques. jihun speaks next, “your team trusted you with this role and i’m not sure why when you’ve proved to us over and over again that you can’t stand on stage without leaning on someone else for support. it’s fine to work in a team, but what are you actually good at?” a pause, but the judges’ voice keep playing. “i don’t know whether it’s a maturity issue, a skill issue, or if you just don’t have the talent at this point. i hate to be harsh, but you have to understand that we’re late in the competition. everything matters more now. you lack focus in tackling your weaknesses and your performance suffered for it.”
the live audience, perhaps feeling something for seira, begin to chant boos. they’re momentarily distracted though as the scene changes once more, the highlighted pair of this scene being seira and nayoung.
“nayoung!” she sends her familiar mentor a smile. “would you wanna go over the dance with me?”
nayoung, who has spent a majority of her time coaching seira, respond accordingly. “sure,” she nods. “do you want to go over the whole thing, or is there a specific part you want to work on?”
“i wanted to practice the parts where i stand in center, i figured those parts might be crucial to show the judges i’m better than last place.” she gives a nods, “if that’s fine with you? or do you thinking starting from the start would be better?”
“good idea. let's run through your center parts by themselves a few times and then you can try going through the entire routine? making sure you have enough stamina to get through all of your center parts strongly is important, and we'll only know how you're doing there when you perform the whole song.” nayoung heads over to her laptop, skimming through until she finds seira’s first center part. “let's start at the beginning of the chorus.” it looks like nayoung is spending a lot of time with seira, and only seira.
back to the team building, it’s still seira’s turn. “i think i’m just proud of myself for coming this far, for working so hard, i’ve never worked this hard before, and though it’s draining, i’m surviving,” she claps herself on the shoulder. “nayoung… you’re really an amazing coach, not only are you talented in every field, you’ve been so nice to me, helping me whenever i need with whatever i need, you got great leader abilities, and i’m very thankful to have met you and for you to never have given up on me.”
eventually, the camera comes back to nayoung. first, she thanks seira, before fixing a stern look in jaeyoung’s direction. “is this funny? is this a game to you? you made it to the finale. this performance is going to change your lives. you have a team relying on you to do well. i know you will put the work in, but if you don't approach this with the proper attitude you are going to negatively impact everyone on this team.” but she doesn’t stop at just jaeyoung, eyes flicking towards siwoo now. “and you, are you two happy with being the mean girls of next gen? that's the reputation you're going to have, especially if korea sees some of the behavior and attitude coming from you that i have. do you want to be hated? is that why you're on this show?” a text comes on screen, saying the words: ice princess nayoung is back! the audience seem both petrified and astonished by the display.
“if you have problems with your teammates, i suggest you work it out as soon as possible. if you need to scream at each other and don't want to do it on camera, fine. find somewhere you can. i would say i will pay for you to eat a meal together and talk it out but those of you this applies to can afford that more than i can,” she adds, perhaps throwing jabs at the members who are more financially well-off. she does continue with the activity, though. but she decides to attach another point. “if you feel inclined to apologize or share a grievance, now might be a good time to do so. i hope you know i'm not doing this to be cruel.”
after nayoung’s outburst, the exercise carries on. just like before, nayoung is the first to demonstrate. “i agree with what ren said about seira. she never gives up and doesn't let heavy criticism break her where many others might have. it takes a strength that not everyone has.” it seems they’ll be saying something nice to the person on the other side, this time. “my challenge… i think, maybe, investing so much in other people and thinking of ways to help them. for most of my life, i focused mainly on myself and improving myself, so it's been an adjustment.” looking towards jihyun, she hands over the turn.
jihyun does, starting off with his challenge first. “i think i’m pretty good, not the best but… above average at the least. even so, when performing don’t call me, i faded into the background. that was really tough. it was hard trying to shine. even now, i still find it difficult. i don’t know if i can still pull it off for this performance, but thanks to nayoung-san, i know how it feels like to shine on stage now. you’re good with constructive criticism, getting straight to the point and tackling the main issue. even now, your words are exactly what we need for the team. it’s not something anyone can do, so i think you’re really amazing for that.” after all, nayoung was the one who gave jihyun advice when he performed puzzle.
the screen flickers to the interview room, with jihyun in the middle. “i watched my older performances. i cringed a lot. who was this odd fellow? i felt shameful watching it, and i had to watch it until the end. there were so many things i didn’t like about it — but here’s where i can say that because i didn’t like it, i know that i improved. watching puzzle was more bearable. for this, i’m grateful to everyone i worked with. my teammates and the coaches, and of course the judges. everyone’s words, advices and criticism shaped me into who i am today as a performer.”
back to the practice room, he doesn’t stop there. on the other hand, it’s jihyun who kickstarts the apologies. “siwoo, i’m sorry if i looked like i was mocking you earlier… i really wasn’t. i was being honest about it and had no underlying intentions. i hope you’ll forgive me for that.” for some reason, jihyun resembles that of a kicked puppy—whether that is an act or not though, is ultimately up to the viewers and siwoo to decide.
siwoo is the focus of the camera yet again. “nothing to forgive you for. i wasn't even mad, i thought it was funny,” siwoo replies. was it genuine? was it an act? who’s to say. siwoo seems to think for a moment, clearly struggling to find something nice to say for the man sitting beside him. “you're someone who's very likeable. you're kind without even trying, and that's something that i've always struggled with. i think it's nice... being able to see that in you. and i'm sorry if it seemed like i had... any animosity towards you. i just wanted to get to know you better.” siwoo seems to be bearing his heart out for jihyun, maybe there is truth in what he’s saying? either way, it feels honest, and jihyun seems to take all that siwoo is saying without any grievances.
but will that be all, between jihyun and siwoo?
regardless of whether either of jihyun’s or siwoo’s speeches proved to be truthful, the screen flits towards another scene, although it still features the same pair. siwoo is approaching jihyun, perhaps having realized his mistakes for holding onto a grudge. nayoung’s words must have knocked some sense into him. “jihyun. let’s watch a movie together when you’re free. i think… it’d be nice to get to know each other.” he’s holding out his phone to jihyun, perhaps showing what movies are playing currently for the both of them to watch.
“a movie date? that’s new… you can pick any of them, i’m not too familiar with these movies… there’s nothing in particular that i dislike…” jihyun seems to be accepting of siwoo’s proposal, scrolling through siwoo’s phone. until, he gets distracted. “now, what’s this?”
siwoo seems embarrassed, like jihyun had just discovered a part of himself that he’d rather kept hidden. maybe that’s a good thing? will the two be on better footing now? “i was doing some light reading. you’ve never read this? it’s pretty popular. it’s about… this guy that falls in love with the person that he has to kill. something like that, it’s kind of cliche, but it’s really well written.” the audience seemed to be surprised, finding a new side of siwoo.
jihyun whispers something to siwoo, but the cameras don’t catch it. either way, jihyun is still listening to whatever siwoo has to say—are they really getting along better now? “alright, alright. i understand now, you could send me the link, i’ll read it after this performance is over.” they’re exchanging kakaotalks now.
once again, the scene changes, this time to siwoo in the interview room, revealing what happened after the clip that was shown. “i invited him out for a movie and we... did in fact hang out afterwards, and bonded. we became a lot more comfortable with one another and it's easy to work with him. i was being honest when i said that i thought he's always been someone likeable and kind. we took some selcas together, but i'm sorry, i don't think i'll be sharing them. i want to keep them to myself,” siwoo teases the audience, which seems to work; they are reacting.
an unprecedented development, even as the screen switches back to the team building exercise. there’s still one more round to complete, after all. but perhaps everyone will be at ease now, knowing that the two members did work out their grievances, albeit in an unconventional way.
it continues where it was left off; siwoo’s turn. “a challenge i face… i think most of you know that before this i've never danced in my life. i still struggle with it, i think. the feeling i get before going up on stage is still new to me, so i'm never too sure how to cope with it. if it translates badly into how i interact with some of you, i apologize for that too. who’s next?”
inho picks it back up easily. the man was unfortunately placed between jaeyoung and siwoo, the two problematic children at the moment. even then, inho continues the activity with no qualms. “one of my biggest challenges on next gen was dancing and learning choreography. i've never been a dancer either in my life, so it was a difficult step at the beginning, on top of being able to sing at the same time. i think i've improved a lot but i still will continue to work on that.”
he turns to siwoo afterwards, thinking of something nice to say. “siwoo, while your honesty sometimes gets you in trouble, i like how honest and upfront you are about what's on your mind.”
and now, it’s back to jaeyoung. he wastes no time, sitting up-right now as he speaks. “let me correct something. this show was never a game to me. but i figured a team bonding exercise meant you can share a few laughs with the people you're trying to bond with. or is it supposed to always be tense like this? i'm sorry, though. for laughing.” an apology, that seems sincere. as much as it could be, from someone like jaeyoung.
naturally, he doesn’t stop there. “my challenge... i guess it was working with others? i've never had to do that before, really. earlier in the show, i was called out for being too intense. now though, i'm not serious enough. the latter—i'm pretty used to. it didn't matter how a few people thought of me as long as i know i'm serious, but idols are all about image, aren't they? so that's obviously something i have to work on.” he’s opening up, just a bit; although, who’s to say whether it’s genuine or not?
a short montage plays: of ren’s outburst, of inho calling jaeyoung an enigma, of nayoung’s earlier rant just a few minutes ago directed jaeyoung’s way. it stops, ending on a scene between jihyun and jaeyoung now. a strange pair, they’ve never interacted before this after all. it’s jihyun that speaks first, “i’ve been meaning to ask you… what do you think about the song? you know i’m going to be doing the adlibs for these parts, but i’ll like to know your opinion. you have a good eye for things like this.”
jaeyoung blinks, as if surprised that jihyun is taking his abilities seriously, enough to ask for his opinion about something. jaeyoung doesn’t miss a beat, already reviewing jihyun’s previous performance. “i remember you doing adlibs in your previous performance too, actually. to my recollection, you did pretty good!” jaeyoung grabs a lyric sheet, already focusing on jihyun’s parts. “honestly, i think you'll be doing fine. what are you worrying about? harmonizing? if you're worried, we can break down your runs and try it slowly first.” as he’s humming, he lifts his fingers like he’s pressing keys on a keyboard. “this would be easier if i had a keyboard. oh, we should move rooms!”
the scene ends just like that—a short glimpse; maybe jaeyoung is serious about music, after all? jihyun, being one of the first few to take him seriously.
but it flips back to the team bonding activity, where jaeyoung is tasked to compliment inho. “i like your voice, you're always hitting your notes. i think your voice would fit perfectly with an alternative rock song! that, and you kinda give off strong big brother vibes. i like that too.”
that isn’t where he stops, however. once again, he addresses ren, this time giving his mentor a full look. he takes a moment, before he speaks. “earlier i said it's not like we got to sit down and talk for me to know more about you. i'm not opposed to it or anything. but let's be real, we'd probably suck at talking. so, i don't know. we should just play a song together? that would probably be a better bonding experience.”
what might have been a heartwarming moment, turns a little sour as the ren’s face takes up the screen. ren is rubbing his hands over his own face, letting them stay there even as his turn comes up. “we don't suck at talking, you just suck at listening.” something seems to have snapped inside of ren, because he continues on. “okay, can i be honest?” finally, everyone in the room—and the audience—can see ren’s facial expression as his hands drop from his face. “actually, what am i saying? yeah, i'm a coach too, i can speak freely too.”
first, ren turns to jaeyoung. “yes, jaeyoung, you talk too much, and you don't actually hear people when they're trying to talk to you, but at least you're good. no one can pretend you aren't. and i don't just mean at performing. there's a part of you deep down that wants to shut up and listen for once. with that sort of effort, yeah, maybe i could see you working well with us at delta.” ren sounds exasperated, like it’s killing him to admit that jaeyoung is good—but surely that isn’t it, right?
that isn’t the worst of it. ren has more to say, but not to jaeyoung. his expression changes, overtaken by a fury that feels much too personal, further fueled by his own words. all this, for siwoo. “but you, i still don't know what you're doing here. i don't know how you've made it this far when there are people who have gone home who would've been leagues better for this team. you're still treating this entire thing like- like you're some king and we're wasting your time as your lowly subjects by making you reflect on what you bring to the table. which is what, exactly? you just admitted you don't know how to be nice to people. do you understand that that's insane? and if you don't make some kind of effort to make genuine connections, the rest of this team is going to perform circles around you and leave you in the dust.”
once again, the question remains: what happened? why did ren react that way? murmurs and whispers fill the auditorium. throughout next gen, there had been no notable interaction between siwoo and ren, not so much as a passing conversation. but, there is a clip of siwoo and ren interacting during preparation for this performance. before cutting back to the team building exercise, that interaction is what’s being played.
siwoo enters the practice room, sheet in hand, looking for nayoung. instead, he finds ren in the room. “oh, ren, do you know where nayoung is? i was hoping i could get some pointers from her.”
ren’s expression seems unreadable the moment siwoo enters the room, but there is no explanation for such a reaction. was it warranted? on the other hand, siwoo remains amiable. “she's in a one-on-one with seira,” ren informs. another text flashes in the bottom of the screen: is nayoung just coaching seira now? after a pause though, ren offers help. “why? is there something you need help with?”
“oh, i see. thanks,” was siwoo’s simple reply. but since ren is offering a hand, siwoo continues. “i wanted some pointers about rapping, i feel like all i've been doing is speed talking without any rhythm to guide me. this song is all about rhythm, and i've got a duo part with jay that we're trying to match up together.”
at that, ren stays quiet, only for a bit. but for comparison, two clips play simultaneously: one of ren with inho, the other of ren with seira. with the two of them, ren was quick to help—even though seira was asking for pointers on dance, the skillset that ren isn’t widely known for. with siwoo though, there seems to be some sort of hesitance. but where does it come from?
ren does manage to comment. “you should treat it like singing. just because there aren't any written notes doesn't mean it isn't musical. there are still important moments of emphasis, and percussion, and inflection. otherwise it will just sound like you're talking without actually saying anything.”
before this team building, everything seems to be fine between the two of them, minus some strange behavior from ren’s side. but there’s nothing to indicate an outburst like this would happen from ren.
the team building exercise continues, though. because it has to. the camera returns to ren, voice now less intense. “unless it was just—more camera time you were after, in which case: congratulations, ryu siwoo. you did it.”
awkwardly, ren mentions his challenge. “my biggest challenge has been... finding the balance between being a good coach and being a good trainee...and still keeping track of who i am and who i want to be, as an artist. and a person. ...sorry. seira?”
poor seira, the one who had to follow through with an unexpected explosion. the auditorium is silent, confused, unsure how this would affect the performance as a whole. what just happened? is this truly the finale? were the tensions that high? the camera zeroes in on seira, looking just as confused after what had transpired.
eventually though, she’s looking at ren with a smile. “i think you’re really good at what you’re doing, i find you talented in anything you do, and i’m really thankful you’ve been willing to help me.” she moves on, most likely because she has to. “well, an obvious challenge is how i placed last twice, it hurt my pride a lot, but i won’t let it get to me. it’s hard, but not the end of the world.” seira’s positivity feels like a contrast to the atmosphere of the room, which is slightly concerning.
but of course, now that seira’s turn has come to an end, so has the entire exercise as a whole—that means anyone can speak up.
siwoo’s face is what the cameras focus on next, his surprised expression, clearly having not anticipated a sudden attack to his entire character, especially from someone who he had little to no interaction with on camera. he doesn’t hijack seira’s turn entirely before speaking up though. he still decides to compliment her. “you're doing a good job, seira. and you're right, it's not the end of the world. you're talented, and you've taught me a lot about rapping too.”
but now, it’s obvious that siwoo will be directly addressing everything ren had said about him. for a moment, the screen catches a glimpse of nayoung’s reaction—she doesn’t say anything, keeping to her position. looks like she’ll allow this confrontation, whether good or bad.
“but... sorry, ren, that felt... a little uncalled for. i understand where you're coming from, but it sounded like you're just personally announcing to the world that you hate me more than anything constructive. and we've barely interacted before this. i've never spoken to you except for when i asked for advice on how to improve my rap. we were never on the same team either.” for all that had been said, siwoo keeps his voice leveled and even, not a hint of rage in sight. instead, he sounds hurt? “this was supposed to be a bonding exercise and i think we've all done pretty well so far opening up to each other. i know i'm lagging behind the others, i know that very well. but there's a difference between being honest with constructive criticism, and just trying to hurt someone's feelings.”
siwoo doesn’t let up there though, defending himself. “i get along well with this team. i like them, i've worked with multiple members before and i'm excited to perform with them. and now it's gone all uncomfortable here because you've decided to go off on another contestant. is that the real reason you're on next gen? to fulfill some sort of superiority complex? going around picking on contestants? because the rest of us are here to fulfill a dream. you're supposed to be our coach, but lately it feels like you pick fights with us more than you help us, is that your way of being a good coach, ren?” in that moment, another clip flashes on screen, the words siwoo had uttered sounded eerily familiar: “what are we to you, exactly? just tools for you to prove your worth? your second chance to show you-know-who that you deserved your prize last season? a trophy for you to present to your ceo as a 'hey-i-did-this-please-keep-me’ thing? our lives are the ones on the line, and here you are plastering your failure onto all of us. waiting for one of us to mess up, maybe. i don’t know. you know yourself best. if you can’t handle the pressure of coaching, of training, of failing to do all that—why did you sign up?” it’s jaeyoung’s speech, back from his argument with ren in the previous episode.
unlike jaeyoung though, siwoo ends his words with an apology. “i'm sorry if i stepped out of line, but i genuinely don't know what i've done to you to warrant so much hate, or why you've decided to come for my personality when we've never spoken personally before. but if you do have an issue with me, then i'd prefer it if you approached me one-to-one about it, rather than use a team bonding exercise as an opportunity to tear my character down. if whatever you said came from a place of concern for the team, then i'll listen to your advice well.” then, he turns to his teammates. “i'm sorry for that guys, but still, let's do our best. we've got a few more days ahead of us, and we have to win.”
“you think i think i'm superior to you? i'm not stupid. i have to wake up every day and remind myself i'm not inferior to you,” ren fights back, emotional, unable to contain himself. but why? no one really knows. “the only thing that separates me from the rest of you is opportunity, and a piece of paper with my name on it. and i know that. i'm not entitled to any of this. i have to work so hard, every single day, and when someone gives me something i have to fix about myself, i listen to them.”
but ren drops a statement, which causes another stir. “and to pretend like we've never spoken to each other once?” a text appears on the top of the screen, in between siwoo and ren: do they know each other?
siwoo doesn’t seem to recognize him. as the strained atmosphere lingers, siwoo’s voice can be heard in the background. “actually, we haven't really interacted that much. before this round, i don't think i've ever spoken to him. even during this round, i didn't really work as closely with him... so his words... they did surprise me.”
“i’m sorry everyone,” ren adds. “i'm taking up your practice time with this, and every minute counts. you should all do your best and listen to nayoung.”
and it’s nayoung who concludes this exercise. “okay,” nayoung sighs. “thank you for your honesty and vulnerability, everyone. if this inspired anyone to have some harder conversations, i'll encourage you to speak to one another privately - away from the cameras, if possible. in the meantime, let's take another five minute break, then get back to practice. hopefully now that we know each other a little better performing as a group will look more natural.”
she stands up from the circle, allowing the rest to disperse.
after such a tense scene, the crowd is silent, unable to make any comment. as each person returns to their usual rehearsals, the screen momentarily shows siwoo again, in the interview room. “i'm sure he has his reasons. but i would be lying if i said his words weren't hurtful. did i seem like i thought that i was better than everyone else? was i pulling my team down? those thoughts ran through my head in that moment. was that the sort of image i had to someone that i never worked with...? i was trying to be as honest as possible during the team bonding session – about my flaws and what i was proud of,” siwoo looks hurt. “but even that… when he said that i didn't deserve to be here, honestly it felt very demoralizing. hearing that from a coach too, someone that might even be a colleague in the future if i'm lucky enough... i was already aware that i was lagging behind... but to hear it like that... that i was so terrible at what i was doing, even when i was trying my best... especially from a coach... i thought to myself... ah... am i that unlikeable? ah... will i never be good enough, no matter how hard i try? do i have to give up on this dream? i wish he would've chosen a less public space to try and tear me down. it almost felt like he was humiliating me... on purpose.”
perhaps the crowd doesn’t know what to think now. that might’ve been quite the unfortunate place to end things, carry on with the performance—but even after the vcr fades to black, there’s still more.
the screen lights back up, beginning at a practice room, where siwoo is standing alone. that is, until someone announces his presence. “hey, loser!” it’s jaeyoung, sliding up to siwoo without a single worry. “look at you, game face on. what’s got you so worked up?” he asks, despite everything that has happened during the exercise prior.
instead of answering, siwoo is frowning. “i thought you’d be busy with your new best friend, aren’t you going to ask him for help?” that being said, siwoo continues speaking, a bit of honesty seeping through his words. “you came at the right time. i was just practicing my lines. i can’t keep relying on my face. you got any ideas for our part?” siwoo lifts his sleeve up, but doesn’t explain why. another text flashes: does he just let jaeyoung write on his arm or something?
jaeyoung doesn’t take what siwoo is offering, instead using this moment to tackle siwoo instead. siwoo reacts fast, arms snaking around jaeyoung’s waist to keep him steady. “are you jealous, ryu siwoo?” jaeyoung questions, teasing. “come on, i only have one best friend. and he's finally breaking a sweat, for once! you care about the show now, huh? you look better like this.”
“i think i'm getting greedier,” siwoo admits. “i really want to win this time.”
jaeyoung rolls off soon enough, showing his teammate his lyric sheets filled with notes and scribbles. “actually, since it's us, i'm pretty sure our chemistry and synergy would show itself on stage. but we should probably practice the moments where we switch centers.”
“we do work well together, i think it'd be cool if we had a little fun with it, like we always do. it's almost like we're throwing lines at each other, like a conversation.” all of a sudden, siwoo is laughing; freely, too. he lifts his hand up to rub his thumb against the space between jaeyoung’s eyebrows. “you're taking this really seriously too, huh? relax, your notes are good, they always are.”
there’s a smile on jaeyoung’s face, but it’s not quite as soft as siwoo’s is—it’s conceited and mischievous, and he’s swatting siwoo’s hand off. “you look better when you’re greedy. i think that would make you look good on stage, actually. you just have to be confident that you’ll get whatever it is you desire, on top of polishing the technical skills that is.” jaeyoung moves his arm, only to pull down siwoo’s rolled up sleeve. “you’re the only one who can tell i’m being serious. maybe i should find a way to fix my brain instead.”
“yeah, you're right. after everything... it feels nice to have someone believe in me.” siwoo is laughing again. “of course i can, it's obvious. you've always taken music seriously. you and your headphones. nothing's wrong with your brain, idiot. i think it's good to write things down. i kind of get it now. you know, i've gotten into the habit of writing stuff down too. makes me feel like you when i do this. and yet, people still…” a frame of ren’s face appears on screen for a few seconds; angered.
but it dissipates as siwoo reaches out to pat jaeyoung on the head. “i do hope we can win though, i think it’d be great if i could win this with my best friend.”
the same disembodied voice from the interviews asks a question: “you seemed to be getting closer to siwoo.” instead of jaeyoung’s face, as people might have expected, it’s jihyun in the interview room. “siwoo’s trying, and he really tried. his dark circles are horrendous without makeup on. once he’s decided on something, he never stops. despite what people say about him, he’s actually really nice. he’s just awkward with expressing it, but he also expresses his kindness in a different way. you just have to get closer to him, talk to him a couple of times; then you’ll know. he’s sincerely trying his best.”
the next scene does feature jaeyoung though, in the same room that jihyun had been. “despite my failing memory, i pay attention, you know! inho's been working on his choreography, and he practiced really hard for his high note. jihyun's also doing his best, we practiced his runs together. seira's working on a lot of things, i see her having one-on-one sessions with nayoung. siwoo... people find this hard to believe, but he is taking this seriously. he'd been rehearsing his rap over and over, until his throat is sore.” the interviewer asks about his mentors next, which jaeyoung doesn’t mind answering. “nayoung made some points, i don't hold a grudge against her or anything. and ren, too. he said that i was good, that no one can pretend i wasn't. that's a pretty high compliment coming from him, right? even though we started off on the wrong foot.”
“anyone you’re hoping to get signed with?” the interviewer questions. jaeyoung answers easily. “i don't really think we'd be picked up by the same company even if we do get signed, because we're kinda different. but, siwoo. he might not be everyone's choice, but i want to see him signed. not just because he's my friend... but because, contrary to popular belief, he has been working hard.” he pauses to laugh. “besides, i love an underdog story. someone you don't expect to win, winning. things like that.”
this time, it’s seira who sits in the interview room. “i think the hardest part about this time was that i know when this performance is over, the show is over, there’s no more performances to show and prove you’ve improved, there’s no more chances, this is my last chance, and i have to work extra hard for my last time. this show… it all went by so fast.”
even though there’s a heavy load to unpack from what was shown on screen earlier, the audience can agree with that sentiment—a lot has happened, there’s more than to what meets the eye. but the show must go on! finally, the screen turns dark. the performers of BANG TEAM gather on stage; expressions confident, no hint of any sort of conflict prior. maybe that’s the case after all, the team members themselves have shown to be getting along. but will their chemistry survive the stage?
the opening of the song is in jihyun’s hands. he gets into position along with the others, flashing a confident gaze to the audience, head tilted to the side with his tongue peeking out ever so slightly. the rest of the team seem to be echoing that energy too, aggressive and powerful. perhaps all that tension was successfully channeled through this performance, a song that’s rough. everyone is playing their part, owning the choreography with a fierce attitude. however, no one is clashing. assertive, in-control.
the three rappers give it their all too, with jaeyoung rolling his shoulder off, eyes locked onto the cameras as his lips stretch to a playful smirk. playing off of jihyun’s energy, he bites onto his own glove—a show of confidence. siwoo follows suit, eyes moving from the cameras to the live audience. as he raps his lines, it sounds passionate, practiced with gestures and smiles. the two in particular bounce their energies off of one another, heating each other up. seira doesn’t lag behind though, smirking into the camera, obviously assured and confident in her rapping skills. but the high note—that goes to inho, who executed his lines and dance moves accordingly. he hits the note, no voice cracks, and seamlessly falls back into choreography.
it’s a heart-pumping performance, with interactions between members. the song eventually comes to an end, with the members making their ending poses. the crowd cheers, roaring out screams and shouts—matching the feral energy that the performers had shown them. the camera focuses on each member, allowing them to pose and bask in their last glory. this is, after all, the last performance of this season.
once the adrenaline has shimmered down, so do the cheers. now, the judges can make their comments.
there’s a moment of quiet where even the audience is quiet, anticipating what the judges will say about the vcr of the tense practice sessions and then the performance itself. finally, it’s jihun who speaks first.
“i think something that many fans tend to forget is that idols and trainees are just human too, at the end of the day.” he doesn’t seem angry yet, though he’s certainly choosing his words carefully. “they get tired, they lose their temper, and sometimes they fight. it happens. but more important than what the fight is about, or who was wrong or right, is the ability to put that behind you and deliver a good performance regardless of what goes on behind the scenes. somehow, you managed to pull it off. even if your coaches weren’t necessarily helping.” jihun doesn’t call anyone out in particular, but the entire audience saw the same clips he did. of course he’s not necessarily happy, but he keeps those thoughts to himself for now.
“you did do well to embody this concept. bang is a… well, it’s in the title, isn’t it?” ran tries to cut the tension in the room with a more lighthearted review. “it’s an explosive song. it’s powerful, it’s strong. i think it was perfect, in a way, that it was a song that was easy to channel your frustrations into. that’s the power of music, isn’t it? it helps us feel something, or get our feelings out, or communicate with each other better. i feel that this entire team learned important lessons about teamwork and communication this round and it ultimately helped to create a better performance.”
yuna purses her lips in thought for a moment before sharing her thoughts as well. “honestly, if we hadn’t seen the struggles you went through during your practice sessions, i would have thought that your synergy on stage was because of good chemistry behind the scenes. it just shows that sometimes there’s much more than meets the eye! regardless, i have to compliment you all on how you played off of each other with this performance. acknowledging the fellow members in your team helps to draw the audience in more, it shows confidence in yourself and each other and is attractive to a fan. good job, despite all the challenges.”
ran speaks again, this time addressing a contestant directly. “it was hard, wasn’t it seira?” she asks kindly, her smile more sympathetic as she speaks to the girl. “being in a team with all boys couldn’t have been easy and i know this competition has been hard for you as a whole. you’re very resilient. not many could endure everything you have and still stand here with their heads held high. no matter what the results are, i hope you are still proud of yourself and everything you’ve accomplished.”
“jaeyoung, we’ve been hard on you at times too, haven’t we?” jihun addresses the young man. “i think it was worth it, though. you’ve changed from the person you were when you first auditioned for next gen and i would say it’s for the better. your skills have grown and your ability to listen to others around you and correct the things about yourself that would hold you back.”
“if anyone has been a true class act at taking and applying critique, it’s inho,” yuna continues. “you’ve survived this far in the competition by being graceful under pressure and listening to what we asked of you. and your voice, you’re certainly a talented singer and i’m certain that you’ll have a very successful career regardless of the results of this show.”
jihun speaks again, his attention now focused on siwoo. “you came into this competition not very good at anything, didn’t you?” he calls out the contestant on his utter lack of ability early in the competition. “but you’ve also grown a lot. i still think you could use a larger helping of humility, but that will come with time and maturity. you’re too old to be acting like a spoiled child, you know that, right? but you’re probably the most improved contestant on this season. i’ll give you that.”
finally, ran smiles at jihyun again. “did you ever think that you’d be standing here at the finale?” she asks him, perhaps marveling herself that the competition is already at its end. “you’ve become an excellent performer over your time with us on next gen, jihyun. you’re a talented performer and a joy to see on stage. ah, i wish we had another performance to look forward to after this! it’s a shame that this is the end.”
with their final thoughts shared, the judges announce a short break to be taken where they must deliberate on the final results of this last episode of next gen. jian and the entirety of the remaining contestants are called up to the stage where they greet the fans while the judges exit to discuss in private who to sign, who to award the win to, and how to wrap up this season of the show.
they return after a short time away, taking their seats again and waiting for the crowd’s cheers to quiet before yuna picks up the microphone to speak.
“to be honest, this has to be both the easiest and the hardest performance for us to judge. on one hand, performing a completely unique song means there’s no one for us to compare your performance to. on the other, it makes your technical skills and fundamentals all the more important. at this stage, the finale, you’ve been learning under our instructors and special mentors for several weeks and have more or less already been treated like trainees. even as a debuted idol with all the experience i have, i’ve never stopped learning. so, regardless of the decisions made today, i hope you all continue to pursue your dreams and never stop chasing after personal growth and improvement.”
“furthermore,” jihun adds, “we have to take into account your entire performance throughout the show up to this point. some of you gave your best performance ever tonight, but we can’t make our final decisions based on one performance alone. we’re considering how you performed, reacted to criticism, and improved throughout the duration of next gen. and how we think you’ll be able to continue to improve under our training programs.”
“this is not an easy decision to make,” ran assures them. “as much as we want to sign every one of you– you wouldn’t still be here if we didn’t –it’s just not feasible for our company to take on so many new trainees at once. but that doesn’t mean that this is the end of the road for anyone who doesn’t sign a contract tonight. i’m sure this is not the last we’ve seen of any of you, even if it’s where we must part ways in our journeys for the time being.”
“without further ado,” jihun gestures to jian, “our emcee is holding the results of season two of next gen in her hands.”
all attention is drawn in on jian, who doesn’t seem to feel the pressure in the slightest as she smiles at the audience and at that contestants gathered around her, desperate to hear their fates.
“before i reveal the results, let’s give one more big round of applause for our judges, including our special coaches throughout the series?” she pauses for the audience to respond with a loud cheer as requested. “and thank you again to the staff who have made this event and every episode a possibility,” she pauses for another cheer from the crowd, “and thank you to mnet for producing this series.” again, they roar on command.
finally, with no reasons to delay the results any further, jian peels open the envelope in her hands.
“first, we’ll reveal the grand prize winners. these top three contestants will be offered an open contract to any of the three companies represented on next gen and may choose to join any one as a trainee.”
the tension in the venue is thick enough to cut with a knife as the contestants and audience alike eagerly await the results written on the cards in jian’s hands. this is it; every drop of blood, sweat, and tears has lead up to this moment.
“our third-place winner, offered a contract to any of the three companies is… CHOI HANGYEOL!”
the cameras focus in on hangyeol’s face, his fans loudly screaming their approval and excitement for his win. jian pauses to let the cheer die down before she continues.
“in second place, offered a contract to any of the three companies is… KIM ARA!”
again, the fans in the crowd let out a raucous cheer as they congratulate their favorite on her success and the promise that they’ll see her on stage again someday soon. the cameras capture ara’s expression as jian again waits for the crowd to die down. after all, the ultimate first-place winner will be announced next.
“and in first place, our overall winner of season two of next gen, with a contract to any company of their choice is… PARK STEVEN!”
the crowd is beside itself as the largest cheer yet goes up to celebrate stevie’s win. what an underdog story; eliminated early last season only to win first place the very next year. he may be the last contestant to receive an open offer from all three companies, but there’s more contracts to be announced and the crowd eventually settles to find out what will come next.
it’s ran, not jian, who speaks next. “congratulations to all of you,” she smiles at the winners, “of course all three of us hope that you’ll choose our individual companies. i can promise you that you’ll be successful no matter what you choose and we’ll be delighted to have you. you’ve earned this, especially you, stevie.” she spares an extra smile to the first place winner.
“from this point, we’ll count down to our final ranks,” jian explains to the audience. “in fourth place, and offered a contract to SR MEDIA, please congratulate JANG HYUNKI!”
ran offers a new smile to the contestant offered a contract to her company as the crowd cheers again.
“in fifth place, with a contract offer for STUDIO DELTA, SONG JIAYI!”
the ceo leans back in his chair lazily as the crowd roars their approval. he nods approvingly at jiayi.
“in sixth place, offered a contract to SR MEDIA, HAN JUEUN!”
ran beams brightly at the young woman as the crowd cheers yet again.
“in seventh place, with an offer from STUDIO DELTA, SONG JAEYOUNG!”
again, jihun nods his approval along with the shouts of the audience, pleased with his decision.
“in eighth place, offered a spot in LIME ENTERTAINMENT, RYU SIWOO!”
for the first contestant that lime entertainment signed, yuna stands and waves her hand at the audience as they cheer for siwoo.
“our ninth place winner is the final contestant to be offered a contract on next gen,” the mood in the venue suddenly shifts as the remaining contestants feel the tension of the final spot being revealed. of course not everyone can win, as has been explained to them before, but after so much hard work it’s painful to miss out after getting so far.
“in ninth place, with an offer from LIME ENTERTAINMENT,” jian takes a breath, perhaps nervous herself as she reads off the final name, “RYEO JIHYUN!”
the crowd cheers for jihyun’s victory, though the remaining contestants know that this is where their road ends for now. jian doesn’t draw the rankings out any further and instead announces tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth place in rapid succession one after the other; YUWOL, INHO, SEIRA, TOUMA, and YEJUN in that order.
“i’m sorry that this is where our journey with you ends for now,” yuna tells the contestants going home without an offer from any company. “it was a hard decision for us, but ultimately we have a duty to our companies and it wasn’t a good fit at this time. i hope that you all continue to practice and pursue music and we’ll see you again someday, much like stevie made us eat our words by his appearance on this season.
“congratulations to all of the winners,” jian wraps up the results, smiling to the soon to be trainees. “and thank you again to everyone who has supported next gen.”
the show and program reaches its close, the final good byes said on stage among the new trainees and eliminated finalists and written thanks scrolling across the bottom third of the screen.
it only makes sense that the concept evaluation episode opens with a flurry of brightly colored scenes, clips from the performances yet to appear as the editors reintroduce the viewer to NEXT GEN and do better playing in the background. a short recap of RHEE JIAN announcing the concept evaluation plays and the teams and coaches are displayed to the audience one by one. finally, when all of the refreshers are over and done with, the new content begins.
three judges take their seats at the usual table across from the stage. the room is quiet save for the few staff members milling around in preparation for the performances, the contestants somewhere backstage beyond their sight and safe from critique for now.
“SEO RAN,” YOON JIHUN is the first to speak to his fellow ceo, “it’s a little odd that we gave the contestants a concept evaluation but not a single one is performing a SR MEDIA group’s song. are you not confident in your own artists’ selections?” he grins slyly, perhaps trying to start something.
ran, to her credit, only smiles in return. “it’s a favor to the contestants, actually,” she clarifies, “our groups have such clear, well-defined concepts for most of their releases that it can be hard to separate the song from the music video or stage performances you remember and come up with something new. it wouldn’t be fair to try to judge them on something that’s difficult even for seasoned professionals. instead, we gave them songs that had a certain vibe, but not as set in stone in terms of memorable visuals and creative direction. it’s almost a blank canvas for them to work on, in a sense.”
“i understand what you mean,” YUNA nods along. “no matter how good you are, people will always compare you to the original when you’re performing a cover. the more beloved a song is, the harder it is for anyone else to do it justice.”
“exactly. not that any of these songs aren’t great tunes in their own right, but they’re easier to handle than A.MAZE or WONDERLAND,” ran confirms.
“so why organize the groups the way we did?” jihun is clearly reading off a cue card, moving the conversation forward in the way the writers and editors want them to.
“well, some of them are obvious,” ran flips through cards with each contestant’s face printed on them, laying them out on the desk in front of them. “JUEUN, for example, has excellent confidence on stage that makes her look like she’s having fun no matter what she’s performing. the cute and bright concept leans well into that. and SIWOO is just clearly born for the elegant concept. STEVEN, on the other hand, probably would have suited the cute concept as well but i think he needs to be challenged more than someone like siwoo does and he has potential for other concepts in him as well.”
“when we’re putting together a group, they’re very rarely doing one concept for their entire careers,” jihun points out.
“exactly, which is why some contestants needed to be introduced to a different facet of themselves,” ran smiles. “we may be surprised by some of them.”
“are we ready to begin?” a voice from the production staff calls out, and the judges collect their contestant cards to save for rankings later.
a scene of all teams are gathered up on stage around emcee jian plays before fading into the first practice room scenes.
"the judges told us how modifying the choreography could express the storyline we're attempting to tell better," YUWOL muses aloud to HANGYEOL as the NONSTOP team begins preparations for their first performance together. "but to be honest, i'm not the best when it comes to that."
“that’s why i’m here!” hangyeol assures his teammate. and who would dare to doubt the shining star of the season? hangyeol’s confidence is nowhere near unfounded; perhaps his teammates feel better just having him and his good luck nearby. maybe it would be easy to dislike him out of jealousy or resentment, but the man has a rather cute disposition, throwing his hands in the air exuberantly as he volunteers his help to the team.
after a moment of stretching, hangyeol stands and walks over to the sound system while explaining his ideology to yuwol. ““the first step is to find what’s special and unique about the way your own body moves. we’re in a carnival, right? so let’s move through the room as if it is a carnival, but then take everything you do and heighten it by, like, thirty percent!”
“i’ve never been to a carnival before,” yuwol confesses and a record scratch is played as hangyeol’s jaw drops.
“really? never?! yuwol! we have to change that!” it doesn’t deter hangyeol though, who effortlessly links his arm through yuwol’s as if guiding him through an imaginary carnival in the practice room. “i just think everyone should get the chance to ride a ferris wheel and eat cotton candy at least once in their lives! next time there’s a carnival in seoul, i’ll have to take you. how does that sound?”
“pretend you’re surrounded by all sorts of lights, and colors, and smells. and you have all day to experience every single one with the person you care about the most,” hangyeol continues, describing the event in detail in lieu of yuwol’s personal experiences with one. “i know it might seem a little absurd at first, but trust me, it’ll help.”
“i struggled with dance at first, but… nowadays, it’s actually rather fun,” yuwol explains in the interview room, his scene with hangyeol cut short by his own words. “actually, coming up with ideas for the stage was also exciting. these are all rather new to me, so i’m surprised at myself too. that i’m able to enjoy the process this much.”
looks like that isn’t the only new thing being done. the scene shifts, showing yuwol and jueun in front of one of the training room mirrors. jueun makes a face, puffing her cheeks, confident in her cuteness; coming off natural. "come on, i want you to look in the mirror with me and pretend like you're on a date and trying to make your partner smile or something,” she tells yuwol, who seems to be having a harder time making the same facial expressions.
yuwol hums, seeming to be in thought. eventually, like jueun had done earlier, yuwol puffs his cheeks, pouting, imitating his teammate. it’s his first attempt, that’s for sure. “okay… how was that?”
jueun giggles in turn. “well, it’s definitely better than what you were doing before,” jueun approves.
“how did you feel when you saw that your ranking had dropped so much?” a disembodied voice asks jueun, now the only focus of the camera in the interview room. “i knew it could happen at any moment, since this is a competition show, after all. however, i was still a little shocked. however, it motivated me to work even harder to show the judges that i still had a lot more to show them.”
what is it that she’s eager to show the judges? this time, jueun and hangyeol are back on screen, going over their rap lines together. “look at us being the main rappers of the group,” jueun says, nudging hangyeol’s side with her elbow. hangyeol seems to share the enthusiasm, not without expressing some of his struggles.
“why does this feel like it’s harder than singing?” hangyeol questions, although the pair continue to work on their lines. "the professionals make it look so effortless. and here i am, sounding like i'm about to perform a hip-hop remix of the three bears." hangyeol sounds rather distraught, but jueun remains positive still.
“it will not sound like a hip-hop remix of the three bears,” she reassures her companion. “"i've been tapping my pen along to the beat to make sure i don't fall behind since the rhythm seems to be the most important thing in a rap," jueun suggests as a method of practice.
that seems to give hangyeol some sort of epiphany. “oh! I’ve seen something online- thisth-” hangyeol takes his own pen and sets it firmly between his teeth, “this is supposedsh to help with your pronunshiation.” it’s a rather comedic scenario, the camera lingering on hangyeol’s hilarious display for added effect.
most of the team members seem to be new to rapping as a whole. JINGREN is pictured practicing his lines with jueun as well, despite having lesser rapping verses. "it's a safe place here. did you want to practice the rap parts with me? so that we can get comfortable before the song before we split up the lines so that we can take any part that we possibly get,” jingren suggests, motivated to work on a new skill. “i am willing to give rap a try, especially since it seems like i haven't quite found my direction with something specific yet."
“how about we listen to the original a few times on repeat first so we get the basic rhythm down?” jueun says in turn, eager to start rehearsing as well.
“i really didn't know if i had it in me to rap, but i was willing to try,” jingren’s voiceover from his interview plays over the scene of the two practicing their lines. “the song had quite a few rap parts, and while it was divided between a few of us, i'd never rapped before other than during karaoke."
“guess we will all have to pick up some slack since i don’t think anyone in our group is particularly a fantastic rapper. but it’s not possible to cut these key parts of the song out,” jingren summarizes, determined.
despite all the hardwork the team is displaying, there’s a few shared moments where they can breathe and relax. YEJUN is seen approaching hangyeol. “congratulations!” yejun exclaims, a tender smile on his face. “i know we barely have any time for it, but your second first place should be celebrated. i’ll do something better if you get a hat trick.” the moment is sweet, cute and bright, funnily enough a contender for the concept the team had been assigned. yejun is handing something over to hangyeol, presumably a congratulatory gift.
hangyeol seems to appreciate the gesture, expressing his gratitude from the way he takes the vitamin drink and bowing slightly. “thank you, yejun. that’s so kind. i only feel like i have to work…even harder now. maybe even harder than before. i’m afraid one of these days i may run out of ‘hard’ to work.”
yejun rebuts that, almost immediately. "you deserve this, you're amazing,” he reassures, notably gentle. “i’ll be your voice teacher if you be my dance teacher,” yejun adds, not forgetting what they’re here for.
“you’re too nice to me, hwang yejun,” hangyeol tells the other off lightly, although it’s obvious he doesn’t mean it. “but it’s a deal.”
overall, the team seem to be working well together, working on what they know they lack. but where are the coaches?
the scene changes again, this time showing DOHYUN and yuwol separated by a makeshift desk. dohyun is holding a camera directed at the contestant as he is practicing something, a little bit lost in thought. a short clip plays taken from the previous episodes, where jihun had snapped: “i’ve never been more humiliated by a studio delta team in my life.” that, of course, referencing dohyun’s team at the time. is that what dohyun has been thinking about?
“and, like that. that’s what i had in mind… what do you think?” yuwol asks, which seems to bring dohyun out of his haze. the audience doesn’t get to see what exactly yuwol is asking dohyun’s opinion for, that will be saved for the performance later. but whatever it was, dohyun is reacting positively.
“i think.. you’re going to end up with a million new fans and a million other grandmothers wanting you as a grandson- i would call that a success,” dohyun replies as he ends the recording, encouraging and supportive.
“do you have faith in us?” yuwol asks next, and the frame closes in on dohyun’s face, searching for a specific reaction. as if implying, would the same unfortunate occurrence happen again with dohyun’s new team? that unasked question doesn’t receive an answer.
“you were at the mercy of the teams we gave you,” jihun’s voice can be heard once more, playing as the screen zeroes in on dohyun’s face. will this time be different? perhaps, there is a glimmer of hope. there is no verbal answer from dohyun at this time, however.
maybe that answer will show itself in the team’s performance.
the team of five enter the stage wearing matching outfits of a pastel color scheme, showcasing a certain theme. while the stage is still dimly lit, it can be seen that certain corners of the stage have different mini sets, keeping the audience guessing what they could be. but then the set fades away, the camera is instead being greeted by jingren’s face as the music begins.
the lens pans down, showing jingren’s hand linked with the cameraman’s—or in this case, the audience—and leading them towards the stage. jingren’s smile is beaming, taking the audience towards the set, which seems to be a mini carnival with booths and DIY date spots.
the other three have already taken their positions, and the performance begins.
it becomes apparent that the team will be moving across the mini sets, having their own date moment with the camera (a.k.a the audience who are watching). yejun’s is up next, seemingly going through an array of mirrors. the camera ‘trips’, but yejun is quick to rush over to his date, concerned as he helps his date regain their feet. the singing goes on, yejun hitting his notes despite multitasking with his acting. even adds a sigh of relief when he notices his date is okay, pointing to a mirror with a laugh.
as one person gets the spotlight, the others become supporting characters. even though they’re moving from set to set, they maintain the same flare of choreography, modified to fit their elaborate stage.
as yuwol’s rap verse approaches, the camera shifts to a different point of view, carefully taken to another set. this time, it’s a wooden stand colored pink with the sign ‘kissing booth’ plastered on top. the contestant on the other side of the booth is yuwol. he’s holding a lip balm, uncapping it as the audience continues to watch. yuwol acts nervous with the way he bites his lip and steals glances at the camera. using his finger, he swipes the lip balm on his own lips before pretending to apply it onto his date’s. he doesn’t kiss his date though, despite the name of the booth, he lifts his face up and allows it to disappear out of frame, leaving the audience to wonder what exactly yuwol had done. either way, he’s giggling as if he’s teasing.
the song continues on, the team returning back to formation as they move towards the next set: hangyeol’s. he’d be delivering this scene along with his rap verse too. his moment is centered around a snack booth, hangyeol leading the camera towards the booth. a cake is then served which hangyeol takes advantage of, taking a forkful of whipped cream and holding it up to the lens mischievously, acting flirtatious. some of that whipped cream remains on the tip of his nose, followed by a finger coming from behind the camera to wipe the whipped cream away. the scene ends with hangyeol’s blush.
the last individual moment of the stage focuses on a faux photobooth, which is jueun’s time to shine. jueun pulls off a few poses alongside the camera, as if she’s actually taking photos, singing her lines accordingly all the while. it’s a cute and intimate moment, jueun being playful with her company. that is, until the rest of the team ‘photobombos’ the photos and poses with jueun and her date.
“i’d just like to say that i gave it my all, and this was all really fun,” jueun’s voice from the interview room plays as the camera focuses on the group, all with smiles on their faces.
the performance goes on, and with jueun taking charge of the last line, she gives the camera a nice wink for her ending pose.
a round of applause can be heard from the judges, before the contestants get ready for their critique.
ran is the first to pick up her microphone; this is her company’s challenge after all. “first, i want to congratulate you all on a successful performance. i could feel your earnesty in trying to put on a unique, memorable performance and i want to be sure you all know that your efforts didn’t go unnoticed. you were the only team without a representative from sr media helping you, so please know we’ll take that into account as we review this stage.”
“as a whole, it was a very charming performance,” ran continues to smile. “it was sweet how you were able to highlight each member of your team and stay within the theme you chose. however, i don’t think it was very far off from the original performance and came off a bit… amateur-ish? which i suppose is to be expected, especially since you lacked guidance.”
she seems to shoot a look at DOHYUN and SEOJUN, who were notably absent from the preparation clips. however, neither trainee being from her company, she decides to simply let it be.
yuna takes over instead: “while concepts and acting may be sr media’s specialty, lime entertainment also dabbles quite a bit in using stages and storylines to enhance our performances. i’m surprised that seojun didn’t take a more active part in helping to plan your performance. coaches, please remember that it’s your responsibility to support our contestants. we may not be able to eliminate you from the competition, but these contestants are your responsibility. please do not take it lightly.”
the woman sighs before continuing on: “in any case, i do have to agree with ran. the performance was cute and charming, but seemed a bit disorganized at times. like you were trying to fit too much into a short time. it’s easy to let ideas get ahead of you, but it should have been on your coaches to help rein them in and refine them.”
“dohyun, you’re not going to regain my favor by disappearing into the background. you’re still representing studio delta in a competition, so i expect to see a little more effort from you in the final round.” yoon jihun crosses his arms and scowls unhappily. he may not be shouting with the same rancor as he had the previous round, but his disappointment is palpable. “nonstop team, you did well to support yourselves despite the lack of effort from your coaches. i feel like that should be praised more than yuna and ran have mentioned so far; you’re all just beginners, babies really. you had to learn how to walk on your own while everyone else was getting better support. i want to commend you for your effort; you did well with the resources provided.”
“and HANGYEOL,” jihun continues, now moving onto individual critiques, “it was rather brave of you to take on so many rap parts when it seems to be a relatively new skill to you. you’re a great performer so you were able to pull it off decently enough, but it was clear that it’s really not your strongest talent. i can’t quite say you let your team down, but i don’t think you did them any favors.”
“you helped your team with the choreography changes, right?” yuna pipes up, “once again, you’re showing us that you’re an excellent leader. leveraging your talents with the areas your team needs to improve was good. you’re a great dancer, we’re frankly running out of ways to say that, but you’re also a good teacher which is much harder to find in a show like this.”
“i think we did well to put you in this concept,” ran smiles warmly, clearly harboring a soft spot for this particular contestant. “you have a lovely smile, you know. your stage presence is strong enough that even with simple choreography, you still shine. you adapt well to different concepts and that’s something we look for at sr media; being able to be a diverse performer as well.”
“great job, hangyeol,” jihun congratulates the contestant once more before the judges fix their attention on the next member of the team, YUWOL’s face taking over the screen.
“i’ll admit, i didn’t have very high expectations for you with this concept,” jihun begins again, his frown more contemplative than antagonistic for once. “you’re a bit… well, you were put in this team since we didn’t think anything else would suit you very well. you surprised us, yuwol. who knew you had it in you? maybe you should consider acting as a career.” the man laughs.
“jihun is laughing, but i would genuinely suggest the same thing,” ran takes over. “you performed your part well and we could tell that you put a particular amount of effort into selling this concept. half of the road to success is hard work and practice and you certainly gave your best effort with this challenge. honestly, i’m almost sorry that we won’t be seeing this stage ever again. you did well.”
yuna picks up her microphone next, her expression a bit complicated. “i agree with jihun and ran that you performed this concept beyond our expectations, however i want to caution you to not neglect your performance skills as well. you’re still a bit awkward when you’re dancing simple steps. at this point in the competition, i’d like to see a little more improvement in that area. your voice is nice, but i want to warn you not to neglect your fundamentals and fall into the habit of relying on stylization instead of basic ability. overall, you gave us a good performance. but as we reach the end of this competition, you would do better if you tried to be great.”
“thank you, yuwol,” ran finishes the feedback before turning to the next contestant.
YEJUN is the next focus of the judges who waste no time in giving him feedback.
“are you getting more comfortable, yejun?” jihun asks, “you’re not trembling on stage this time. i think it’s the first time we’ve seen you actually smile.” is that teasing in the harsh judge’s voice? the camera zooms into jihun’s face, which actually has a smile on it, before panning to yejun’s expression in return. “if all it took was asking you to act cute, we would have done that ages ago. you seem harder on yourself than even i would be, so i don’t think i can tell you anything about your performance that you don’t already know. i just hope that you don’t lose this spark, whatever it is.”
“is that a compliment from jihun?” ran’s eyes widen in mock-surprise, a wide smile on her face. “in any case, i have to agree that you looked much more at ease, like you were actually enjoying the performance this time. you played cute pretty well, i think you have a good face for the concept overall, but when you’re able to smile you really light up the stage. did it help to have friends on your team this time? while it’s important to be able to get along with whoever is on your future teams or debut units, having familiar faces can help ease a transition. i’m glad we were able to unlock a new side of you with this performance.”
yuna smiles as well. “you’re a talented singer, yejun,” she points out, “and you’re becoming a better performer too throughout this show. it’s been a genuine pleasure to watch your growth. singing is something you love, right?” the camera turns to yejun again for his response. “me too. it’s that passion that got me to debut, and then to all the success i’ve had since then. i hope you’re able to hold onto that through the rest of next gen and whatever comes after.” yuna smiles once more before the camera abandons yejun for now.
“i’d like to point out how JUEUN shined on this stage,” ran beams brightly as she compliments the girl, “your confidence on stage was almost unmatched and this concept suits you almost perfectly. honestly, i don’t even have much to say since there’s hardly anything to critique this time.”
“i wouldn’t say that,” jihun disagrees; of course he would always be able to find something negative even among an overwhelmingly positive situation. “if anything, i would just caution you to be mindful of your groupmates. you were just on the edge of out-performing half of this team, which is good for you in this competition but if you debut in a group someday, being able to work seamlessly together will be important. it could also make your teammates look worse than they actually are and put you at risk for elimination, if you’re not careful. but like ran said, this concept suited you well. you’ll probably be fine.”
yuna ponders over her response for a moment before finally speaking up. “you said that you’d work harder and you had more to show us. talk is fine, but what i’m most impressed with is that you actually put your money where your mouth is, so to speak. you put on an amazing performance that made us all regret dropping you down in the ranks last week, if the other judges agree?” yuna looks over at ran and jihun, who both nod their confirmation of the statement. “well done. it’s no easy feat to do exactly what was promised when it comes to performances like this.”
“JINGREN,” yuna turns her attention to the next contestant, “it was… brave of you to attempt to learn to rap in just a few days of practice. the parts you were assigned weren’t particularly difficult so you were able to pull it off, but i can’t help but think it’s a bit of a shame… you were awkward and it showed to the point it took away from the entire group’s performance. i think that’s why it came across as amateur-ish in some parts, because you didn’t have the ability to sell the performance with confidence.”
“you’re in a team of talented performers this time, jingren,” ran continues, her voice soft and kind despite the criticism coming from her lips. “unfortunately, that can make it even harder to stand out as a performer yourself. i think you did well with the concept overall, you were rather cute, but as yuna said… your performance skills weren’t up to par with the parts you chose.”
“jingren, i’ll be honest with you,” jihun sits forward in his seat, leaning against the table with a rather grim expression on his face. “if nonstop team doesn’t win this battle, you’re likely to be the member we eliminate. the competition is too tight at this point to be too forgiving with poor performance skills. if you’re a singer, you should sing. why try to pick up rap at this point? it was poor strategy that, again, should have been caught by your coaches. if you have to blame someone for this, blame them.”
the camera zooms in closely on jingren’s expression before the entire team is dismissed from the stage, jian’s bright smile taking over as she announces the next performance will be PUZZLE.
as the PUZZLE team prepares for their stage, the scene shifts to the individual who has been told would embody this elegant and sexy concept the most. SIWOO is seen… practicing how to put a tie on? strangely enough, instead of attempting it on himself, he’s doing so around JIHYUN’s neck instead. unlike the previous team’s harmonious chemistry, there seems to be a more tense air between these two. the contrast is made evident.
“do you know how to be elegant?” siwoo asks, not without what seems to be annoyance.
“i’ve taken etiquette lessons as a child, so elegance should come naturally to me,” jihyun answers, somewhat unfazed despite how long siwoo is taking to put on the tie.
“you needed lessons to learn etiquette?” the question slips out of siwoo as if it’s a challenge, or a pointed and directed attack, as subtle as it may be. what has siwoo so bothered? could it be because of their similar circumstances and background?
it looks like siwoo isn’t the only one feeling rather irritated, because it cuts to jihyun speaking in a manner that’s different than his usual self, as if provoking the other. “tell me more about it, partner in crime. siwoo-ya~?”
the scene remains unresolved, instead switching to siwoo in the interview room. “it seemed like you had some sort of tension with jihyun?” the same disembodied voice asks.
siwoo doesn’t seem to respond much at all, and there seems to be a glimpse of displeasure in his face as the name is brought up. “ah…” is all he says, before the scene changes once more to jihyun in the interview room.
“we were happily bantering with each other. siwoo is kinda fun to tease. we were forced to hold hands at some point to get along… but i dont think it’s that big of a conflict?” jihyun answers instead of siwoo, but not giving a lot of explanation for what had transpired.
thankfully, the other teammates seem to be getting along well. HYUNKI and TOUMA are tasked to edit the choreography to suit the concept they have in mind. hyunki is sitting on the floor. “two teams,” hyunki mentions as he nods—what could that mean? is this team being split into two? no answer is given at this time, instead hyunki continues on. “almost like a battle? we could have moments where we change the formations… angled to face each other, but still be looking towards the judges?”
touma is quick to agree, grinning at his teammate. these two working well together, different from the pair before. “yeah, that’s a good pitch! and the battle commencing would be the best time to finally combine the teams and make one formation. SEIRA could be in the center, and that’s when the reveal happens?” the reveal mentioned is never explained in detail, leaving the audience with a moment of anticipation for what this team had cooked up.
hyunki takes up what he and touma came up with to CHAERIN. “if i’m understanding correctly, you’re saying the formation for this part will be different from the original because of the storyline you’ve created, right?” chaerin asks for confirmation, tablet in hand.
“that’s exactly right, adjusting some of the dance seemed like a great way to help highlight the idea of their being these two separate factions within the group.” hyunki seems confident, but open to feedback from someone clearly more experienced.
“i understand the point of it, but i think you should keep in mind that it may be hard to catch your breath if you’re moving around the stage too much,” chaerin verbalizes her concerns, which hyunki takes in stride.
“touma and i practiced it some with the two of us, and it was alright, but i can see how it might be difficult with the full team. it would be an easy fix though! but thank you for the feedback on this,” hyunki responds, happy to accommodate his coach’s feedback. whether they managed to rework the choreography to satisfy chaerin’s expectations is unclear, though. there’s an underlying concern whether the team can manage the demanding choreography.
perhaps the audience is concerned now, as the camera switches to seira and siwoo, who had struggled with dancing in previous episodes. the two of them are seen practicing together. surprisingly, in spite of seira’s lack of confidence in her dance skills before, she’s giving her teammate advice. “for that part, it looks like you’re not moving your arms fast enough?” she remarks. “you’re having great facial expressions though, and you fit the vibe well, i might have you help me with facial expressions.”
that advice seems to work for siwoo, repeating the steps according to seira’s feedback. “thanks seira,” he smiles. “for facial expressions, i think about how no one else can pull off looking like me… but me.”
“so… i should just act really confident?” she asks with her head tilted. that seems to be the theme surrounding seira for this episode, because in the next scene she is asking NAYOUNG something related to her confidence as well.
“how do you seem so confident when you perform?”seira asks as she’s stuffing a riceball into her mouth, with her coach in front of her. “it always looks like i lack confidence…” she expresses, clearly worried.
“i think confidence comes with practice,” nayoung says, providing guidance. “if you don’t feel confident, you can think of it like…playing the role of someone confident. it’s also helpful to just…pretend to be confident to yourself, too.”
as seira takes a bite out of her kimbap, she follows up with another question. “if i pretend to be confident enough, will i eventually turn confident?”
instead of that question being answered by nayoung, it cuts to nayoung in the interview room. “did you have any worries giving seira such a large role, considering she’s currently ranked last?” the mysterious interviewer questions, although it isn’t expanded on what exactly seira’s role is, leaving suspense for the performance later on.
“we realize it’s a risk, but chaerin and i were in agreement that seira deserved the opportunity to prove she’s better than the rank she received. she, and everyone else, worked really hard. i hope those efforts are evident in the performance, and that the judges can see it.” nayoung speaks realistically and to the point, simultaneously invested in her team’s growth but also coming off professional, able to separate emotions from work. perhaps it’s a trait others would appreciate in a coach.
and just what does seira do with this significant role of hers, propelling her to the center of the storyline?
with a seed of doubt planted, it cuts once more to a montage of seira struggling with the concept itself alongside different teammates: with ARA she says, “for this part, could you help me with facial expressions?” to jihyun she says, “the concept, it’s one i’ve never done before, so i’m a bit unsure about my facial expressions, maybe you could help with that?” to hyunki she says, “for this part, would it fit better if i tried to look serious or sexy?” to touma she says, “i’ve never really done a concept like this before.”
can seira live up to her coaches’ expectations?
for now, it focuses on the first scene, showing a clip of seira and ara practicing together, lighthearted and eager to improve. “why not let me take a breather, and i’ll watch you run through this part and i can give you a few tips?” ara proposes, resting against the mirror.
“look for the small things too, they’re also important,” seira requests with a giggle.
ara’s voice can be heard as the pair continue with their practice. “while helping seira with expressions and dance, it also helped me out greatly too. it is true what they say, that teaching something is also one of the best methods of knowing your own material.”
when it comes to workshopping characters, ara and hyunki seem to be having a blast discussing them. “i think i might want to go the angle of a little sneaky myself, a bit mysterious and lurking myself, in some movements if possible,” ara tells her teammate, clearly having put a lot of thought into who she will be portraying. “have you gotten close to finalizing what you want to do for your character?”
“i think so, not that you’ll know much about my character, seeing as you’ll never catch me,” hyunki teases, dropping hints to the audience what character dynamics would be at play on stage.
ara is also working with jihyun when it comes to perfecting dynamics on stage. “do you want this? why don’t you come get it and be lured in by my trap?” jihyun provokes his teammate, holding a phone to his chest like it’s a precious item.
“i won’t perish in your trap… even if it is tempting to get caught up in the lure,” ara replies with determination. it seems the members are enjoying themselves when it comes to the process of building their characters.
but not everyone is breezing through this. touma is seen with jihyun, seeking his fellow contestant for a reason. “you’re all about elegance and… sexiness. any tips on how to… be both of those things on stage?”
it looks like jihyun almost laughs, but doesn’t. instead, jihyun starts explaining by taking touma’s hand. “everyone perceives sexiness differently. play it cool, know how to gaze into their eyes and then smile at the right moment” jihyun gently traces a finger across touma’s palm. “when you do this quickly, it’s not sexy at all… but when you do it slowly, you’re bound to feel something tingly.” that seems to make something click in touma. just like jihyun had flustered stevie in the previous episode—a clip in the corner shows stevie’s reaction from episode three once again as this scene unfolds—jihyun had succeeded in flustering touma as well.
touma seems to be whispering something into jihyun’s ear afterwards, but nothing can be inferred from that short conversation. whatever it was, it got jihyun to laugh; completely different from his interaction with siwoo.
even with his confidence when it came to teaching touma about the vibes of the concept, jihyun isn’t without his own qualms. he seems confused, at wits end even, as he’s seeking some sort of clarity from nayoung. “is there something in me that isn’t shining like the others?” it’s a heavy question, albeit slightly cryptic.
nayoung keeps it honest and blunt, like always. “i think you're a little bit forgettable right now. you just really need to look at it as your time to shine. for now...just perform like it's the last chance you'll get to. hopefully it's not, but if it was, you'd want to give it everything you have and make sure you leave everyone something to remember you by.”
nayoung isn’t just working with jihyun, though. the scene briefly cuts to her working with siwoo, rubbing his shoulders with what seems to be newfound determination, a refreshing state of siwoo’s considering his previously lacking attitude and motivation. “our team has good dancers… i don’t want to fade into the background.” is he finally taking this competition seriously?
“their main issue, in my opinion, is mostly just…believing they’re capable, opposed to their actual skills.” nayoung’s voice is heard as her scenes with the two boys play. “ i think they lacked most when it came to confidence. all of that to say, by the time performance day came, i had the utmost confidence in them.”
chaerin is now the focus of the interview room. “i have personally seen each and every one of you do your best for this performance.” a short clips cuts in, showing chaerin working with touma and siwoo on their singing. “even if things don’t work out exactly how you want it to, just know that somebody knows that you have put your all into it.” she does a little fighting gesture, chuckling.
with each team member working desperately on what they lack, eager to prove themselves to the judges and climb the ranks—how will this performance fare?
there’s no need to wait any longer, as the team members ready themselves for their performance. but instead of opening with the faces of all the contestants, it starts with three of the contestants staring at a makeshift police board, analyzing. touma, ara and seira have taken the role of detectives, which means the other three (siwoo, hyunki, jihyun) have been appointed criminals.
“when we were contemplating the elegant and sexy concept and how it worked with the song itself, we all pretty quickly decided on the idea of criminals and detectives, with one of the detectives actually being another criminal.” hyunki’s voice can be heard as the performance continues, explaining the concept. “we wanted to play with the lyrics that speak about solving puzzle. so the criminals are art thieves who stole a piece of puzzle art, and are leaving small clues along the way for the detectives to follow. they also are confused because the criminals leave the playing cards as a calling card, one for each suit, but they don’t know which criminal represents the diamond, until the end,” he explained, referencing to seira’s reveal.”
the detectives are the only ones visible on stage for the moment, looking at pictures of several art pieces along with images of the three known criminals decorated with their card suits. however, there is one card suit with no corresponding criminal. this seems to be important, but before the audience can start speculating the detectives begin their routine, with seira’s lines being the opener.
so this is the division of teams that hyunki had mentioned, it’s also clear that they’ve included a modified version of the choreography. one that gives the vision of chasing and dodging, a game of cat and mouse. there’s a certain ‘catch me if you can’ aura throughout this performance, with jihyun provoking touma through glances and gestures, as well as siwoo’s eyes finding the camera with a teasing smile, as if daring the audience to look for him. hyunki, too, continued to escape the detective’s grasp. the three criminals remain cocky and confident.
siwoo is seen with the rest of the criminals on the other side of the stage, dropping a large puzzle piece that seems to be taken in as evidence. once siwoo’s first verse closes, the six members come together for a complete formation. this must be the battle that hyunki and touma had discussed prior, where the detectives and criminals are facing one another. a few more puzzle pieces are dropped for the detectives to find, and the song continues on.
at jihyun’s climatic line, the bgm starts to fade out and the puzzle is once again highlighted, the object of the crime. there are two puzzle pieces missing. in this moment, seira takes her detective jacket off and reveals her a diamond attached to her outfit, putting the missing pieces into the puzzle—which is one of the next gen logo. with this, it is concluded that seira had been an undercover criminal this entire time, which must be what nayoung had been referring to during her interview.
the formation returns to six once more, everyone performing the last chorus completed with jihyun’s adlibs. it’s a dramatic scene of triumph and betrayal, a neat closure to a tense storyline.
after applause dies down, the team gathers themselves for their critique.
“did you know that i love crime shows?” ran’s smile is wide as she prepares to review puzzle team’s performance. “so this concept was a real treat for me! you pulled off the detective and criminal concept elegantly, which can be difficult to do considering it’s so easily confused with the children’s game. and tying the title of the song, ‘puzzle’, into your performance by leaving puzzles and clues for the detectives to follow… it was a very nice touch. whose idea was that? nayoung, did you help with that?” ran asks her trainee, clearly approving regardless of who takes credit. “and the grand reveal at the end… oh, i just love it. i felt like i was watching a movie, it was fantastic.”
“where nonstop team came across as a high school theatre performance, puzzle team looked more prepared for broadway,” jihun points out, “nothing against the production value our stage teams put together, and maybe the concepts themselves lent to the difference, but there was clearly more refinement from this team. having an active representative from sr media no doubt helped your performance, which nonstop team also lacked. ah, it’s a shame that we only have one team to compare with, so far,” he sighs, “but you certainly sold us elegance and sexiness.”
yuna sits forward in her seat a bit before delivering her first round of critique of this team. “conceptually, it wasn’t that different from A.MAZE’s sherlock,” yuna points out, the creativity not totally as unique as the others seemed to make it out to be. “but you added new layers to the story that weren’t told before. the playing cards, the heist, the grand reveal… even if you took inspiration from another sr media group, you were still able to make the concept your own, which is impressive in its own right. congratulations on a successful performance, i think as a whole you’ve impressed all three of us.”
“except TOUMA,” yuna continues into individual critiques immediately, “i think you were in your head too much with this performance. you looked like you were fighting the concept more than you were living it, especially in the first part of the performance. the only time your expressions were believable was during your exchange with jihyun. your tone was flat, your dancing was too methodical, and the immersion was broken whenever i was watching you. you did seem to improve your vocals though, so good job on that.”
yuna’s curt review is followed up by ran, who addresses the contestants a little more gently. “you weren’t very comfortable being sexy, were you touma?” she asks, the camera zooming in on touma’s reaction before she continues. “we wanted to challenge you with this concept and… well, you were definitely challenged. maybe we pushed a bit too hard. is there another concept you would have preferred?” again, the camera waits for touma’s reaction. “you did well despite the hardships and i want to commend you for giving it your best without giving up.”
“at least you’re singing better now,” jihun remarks, his words far from soft and gentle as ran’s had been. “as long as we see improvement, we know we’re putting you down the right path. maybe this wasn’t your favorite concept, but you have to trust us a bit more that we know what we’re doing and embrace change more quickly. you did alright. not great, but it’s passable. you didn’t let your team down.” that’s the closest one can get to a compliment from jihun.
“ARA,” jihun turns his attention to the girl once his evaluation of touma is complete, “you seem to be balancing the desire to stand out with the need to support your team. it’s not an easy happy medium to figure out. in fact, it’s one of the hardest things even our trainees have to navigate. these people are your competition, but they’re also your key to the next phase in your career. how do you address that?” he pauses as the camera pans down the puzzle team lineup. “i think you found that balance this time. i could see your ambition, but you didn’t sell out your team to climb to the top. kudos, or whatever.”
“it won’t kill you to give a compliment every now and then,” ran swats jihun’s arm lightly, though she turns to ara with a smile. “ara, you played your part to perfection,” ran praises the girl warmly, “you stood out in a good way, as one of the most comfortable people on stage so far tonight. but, as jihun said, not in a way that made the rest of your team look bad. you were clearly giving this performance your all, which is exactly what we want to see from every contestant at this stage in the competition. it’s only their own fault if they don’t, at this point.”
“you’re a good singer and even better dancer,” yuna compliments the girl, “and i think we were all pleasantly surprised by how well you adopted this concept and absolutely owned the stage. you gave us a good performance. honestly, i don’t really have many notes here for you. if anything, just watch your energy to make sure it’s consistent throughout your performance. it’s okay to be tired at the end.”
“great job, ara,” ran congratulates the contestant one more time.
“HYUNKI… you disappeared into this performance, a little bit,” yuna comments, looking down at something written in front of her before she continues. “you didn’t really have many lines. why was that? the song is a bit rap-heavy, sure, but were you really so content not to give it a shot just to give yourself more time in center stage? you should be a little greedier. this is a competition, don’t forget.”
“yuna’s right,” jihun frowns. “were you really satisfied with the parts you were given? i like to see a little more ambition out of my trainees, especially in the later stages of a competition. did you get complacent just because we gave you a good ranking a couple of times? don’t forget that hangyeol has been first place twice now. you may have been our male center, but you don’t have that much room to fall back on your laurels.” of course the rivalry manufactured early in the season comes back to haunt the contestants now. of course jihun would be the one to bring it up.
ran chooses her words carefully before continuing the critique. “your brand of sexy was a bit… unlikable, at times,” she admits, seemingly unable to find the right words. “cocky can be charming, or sometimes it’s just boastful and loud. i think your performance fell into the second half, i wasn’t as charmed with you as i was with some of your teammates. it’s okay to do things outside of your own comfort zone, but i thought you would handle this concept better.”
“hangyeol would have,” jihun butts in, again bringing up the rivalry. ran doesn’t respond.
the camera watches hyunki’s expression for a moment before turning to the next contestant to face the judges’ criticism, RYU SIWOO.
“siwoo, did you finally wake up and join us?” jihun almost laughs as he addresses the contestant. “don’t think we didn’t notice your apathy in the early rounds, especially compared to how much you seemed to care about this performance now. were you frustrated? did you want to do better? good. that’s what we want to see. if you didn’t, we’d have to send you home by now. we knew you had it in you.” he almost seems smug, as if this discovery was something that jihun himself was responsible for and not siwoo’s own decision to lock in on this competition.
“as expected, this was your concept,” ran beams. “you fit sexy well… your looks help, but your demeanor and expressions during this performance looked so natural. you liked it too, didn’t you?” she teases lightly, a bright smile on her lips as she compliments the contestant. “i think this was our best performance from you yet, siwoo. keep it up and i can’t wait to see what you’ll show us next time.”
yuna presses her lips together in a tight smile. “jihun and ran have praised you for this concept, so i feel it’s my responsibility to point out that your performance skills still aren’t quite up to par. you know this, don’t you? you can cover it up with stage presence and good looks to some extent, but it won’t last forever. siwoo, i hope you continue to take this seriously and show us an even better performance next time. now that you seem more focused, i’ll look forward to how much you can grow.”
“speaking of growth,” ran moves on, “can we talk about JIHYUN’s stage presence? to be honest, at the start of this competition, you looked rather… robotic on stage, jihyun. but this performance… whew!” ran fans herself with her hand as if cooling herself off. “you certainly figured out how to embrace sexy! we knew you had it in you, we’re just glad to see it come out by the time you stood on stage. excellent work.”
“were you really provoking touma on stage?” jihun smiles, amused at what he had witnessed on stage. “i don’t know what’s going on between you two, but we’ve noticed that you seem to be more competitive with each other than the other contestants. it worked well for this performance and you didn’t sacrifice teamwork for whatever it is between you two. sometimes rivalry can bring out the best in both parties. keep at it.”
“this was our best performance from you yet,” yuna smiles, and then glances sideways at ran. “and i’ll admit, i was rather captivated by your performance tonight as well. i’m not sure there’s a girl watching at home who didn’t fall for you a little bit!” she laughs, not at all embarrassed; this is the job of an idol after all. “you sing well, you’re dancing better every episode, and you finally found your confidence on stage. if you can bring that same energy to the finale, you’ll be a hard opponent to beat. great job.”
next to face the attention of the judges is SEIRA, and as yuna picks up the microphone she doesn’t look too happy about what she has to say. “seira,” she sighs, pausing for a moment before deciding how to continue. “you know the phrase ‘fake it until you make it,’ right? we can tell you’re still faking it and haven’t made it yet.”
yuna shakes her head. “i don’t know where to begin. you had the most important role in this concept and yet you didn’t seem special at all on stage. your expressions were inconsistent with the vibes of the performance, your performance itself seemed stiff and robotic, and you keep saying you’ll improve your skills and yet we hardly see a difference from when you first started this competition. i know you worked hard, but it seems that you lack focus and direction.”
“it’s disappointing, to be honest,” jihun also looks unhappy, though that’s not uncommon. “your team trusted you with this role and i’m not sure why when you’ve proved to us over and over again that you can’t stand on stage without leaning on someone else for support. it’s fine to work in a team, but what are you actually good at? if even you can’t confidently say anything, how are we supposed to believe you have any ability? you should be doing better by now. thank your team, since they carried you once again.”
ran purses her lips together. she doesn’t want to be as harsh as jihun, but something has to be said. “i don’t think you were ready for this performance,” she sighs. “i don’t know whether it’s a maturity issue, a skill issue, or if you just don’t have the talent at this point. i hate to be harsh, but you have to understand that we’re late in the competition. everything matters more now. you lack focus in tackling your weaknesses and your performance suffered for it. i’m sorry, seira. if your team doesn’t take first place, you’re in serious danger.”
the camera zooms in close on seira’s face, now the second contestant of the night to receive a similar critique. it’ll all come down to the final judgements at the end of the episode. puzzle team is dismissed from the stage shortly afterward.
before how practice had gone for the ADRENALINE team is shown on screen, there’s the sound of a loud bang of a door cutting in, along with intelligible noises of what seems to be a heated conversation. glimpses of balled fists and shaky hands flit across the screen, followed by murmurs and whispers indiscernible behind the restroom door. just what had happened amongst these team members?
leaving that for later, the camera focuses on INHO and JAEYOUNG, talking about their concept ahead. it seems that the two of them are working on their characters. “do you consider yourself a nerd?” inho asks his companion. it sounds like a random question, a completely different vibe from the preview that was shown earlier.
“i consider myself an enigma,” jaeyoung doesn’t flinch as he says it, uttered with utmost conviction. but he follows that up with a more appropriate answer. “ if i had to say… i guess i’d be the nerd spitting random facts and talking incessantly because i’m socially awkward and spend most of my days buried in books.” why are they talking about nerds, exactly? could this be part of their concept? “you can be the musical nerd. theatre kid vibes, maybe,” jaeyoung urges, giving his teammate suggestions.
“i don’t think i have ever identified myself with the concept of ‘teen crush’ or 'bright’, both of those were ones i knew i would find myself being more uncomfortable with.” inho is seen in the interview room, speaking on his thoughts about the concept he was given. “as we practiced i found myself becoming more and more comfortable with the concept and the storyline.”
“isn’t that you everyday?” inho asks first with an obvious teasing cadence, it’s clear that the two of them have a friendly relationship now, inho listening to jaeyoung’s ramblings with patience. “the music nerd, though, that makes sense for me i think.” luckily, it seems inho is finding his footing even with a concept that he doesn’t seem to be as excited about at first.
jaeyoung seem to be helping others feel in touch with their inner nerdiness, seeing as he’s also talking to KAITO. “have you thought about what cool thing you want to do to impress the popular cheerleader?” he asks, immediately following that up with another question. “actually, do you think i look nerdy enough as is?”
kaito doesn’t seem to mind, answering the questions in succession. “i’m stuck on either bringing a guitar, ‘failing’ to dance, or even just straight up tripping and making myself look like a fool,” the last idea being said in jest. “you look great. what do you think about me?” kaito returns the question, pushing up the glasses he’s wearing.
“it suits you. not all nerds wear glasses though. should we add braces to the costume?” jaeyoung adds on, although it’s clear in the way he said it that it’s not a genuine suggestion.
it seems kaito and inho share the same sentiment when it comes to the concept of teen crush, holding the belief that it’s far from their area of expertise. perhaps because they’re aware of this, they’re discussing their preparations for their future role and how they feel about it. “so, do you think you’re ready to go up there and show how ‘nerdy’ we can be?” kaito asks in a joking manner, gesturing to their attires later—although, the audience doesn’t get to see it just yet. “i wonder if i should have just dressed this comfortably when i was in school.” he tilts his head, as if he’s trying to be cute in that moment.
“ready as i’ll ever be,” inho responds, seeming amused at kaito’s cutesy act. “comfortable was always better if we didn’t have to wear uniforms, but you might wanna work on the aegyo,” he says, teasing his teammate.
“i don’t think i was actually made for the whole 'aegyo’ thing, but if i somehow manage to make it to the very end… well i’ll do my best to show the best aegyo at the finale just for you.” it’s an optimistic promise that kaito is making, hopefully that statement becomes true.
on the other side, stevie and JIAYI can be seen working on the choreography. “what do you think about this?” stevie showcases a few moves to jiayi, seeking her approval and commentary. “looks kinda powerful? maybe? might fit with the drop.”
“i like that it follows the beat drop,” jiayi compliments. “what if we continue that trend throughout the rest of the dance intro?” she hands out her own idea, contributing.
“i think it’ll flow nice. we could add a few transitions too… maybe take turns on each side? so they’d have to pan from side to side? two on the side, then one in the middle to bring it all forward? that could lean towards the end of the intro, if anything.” he speaks as he repeats his motions. “what do you think? am i cooking here?” stevie cracks a joke, grinning.
jiayi is on board. “a panorama of the team. instead of an ending fairy, we’ll have a beginning fairy!” whether a ‘beginning fairy’ will happen or not, will only be shown during the performance itself.
inho seems to be taking on an older sibling figure in this team, helping both stevie and jiayi with their concerns vocal-wise. first, the screen features inho and stevie. “what can i lend my ear for?” inho tells stevie, always willing to help, patient when he speaks and guides a teammate.
“i think i’m good with the tone, but i think my breath control could use a little work…” stevie admits.
“show me what you got so far, and we’ll figure out what we can do to get you a bit steadier. i struggled with that when i was younger,” inho replies, turning his full attention towards stevie. before that scene can be resolved though, it cuts to inho and jiayi instead, working on vocals once more.
“how have you felt about our run throughs so far?” inho asks when he walks over to jiayi. “i think our pitch sounds good together.”
"i thought at first, maybe the harmonies would sound better if it were you and another one of the boys singing this part, but i think it's contrasting in a good way. it adds another layer of . . . depth?" jiayi seems confused at her own wording, but inho is capable of understanding her.
“it definitely adds nice layers as we are winding down the song. sure, me and one of the boys would sound great together i’m sure, but i like it as the two of us.” inho confirms, hopefully putting jiayi at ease. perhaps inho is gifted as a coach, too? or is this because he is familiar with the role of an older sibling?
that being said, the coaches aren’t sitting idly by either. SARANG, with skills in stage presence and performance, is guiding stevie in the right direction with expressions and the like. “i think it’d be fun to do like, some audience eye contact– throw out some more cheeky grins. more personality? that kind of thing. what do you think?” stevie seems eager for a dash of sarang’s wisdom.
“i think that’s perfect, and i think you have the natural ability to know when to milk those moments, and when to lean away from them,” sarang notes. “definitely keep your expressions varied through the ending, but when you strike your final pose, find your camera, and shine; treat that lens as if it’s your favorite person in the world and show it all the love you can!” it’s a helpful imagery, one that stevie seems to understand.
“i think i can do that. i just have to settle on what expression i’d wanna make,” stevie concludes, seemingly thinking about what he should do.
as stevie continues to rehearses in front of sarang’s watchful eyes, stevie can be heard speaking throughout the clip. “i thought it was fun. our song choice helped– it calls for bright and upbeat, and it’s hard not to be when you’re singing along, y’know?” although his face can’t be seen at the moment, it’s obvious that stevie is smiling as he talks. “and everyone was super involved, i feel. there was a lot that we could do with it, but i think we’re all happy with what we ended up with.”
once again, the unseen interviewer poses a question. “you think? were there any disagreements in the creative process?”
it’s then that the screen switches to stevie in his interview room, capturing the nervous look on his face and the shaken laugh. “i mean…a little? i think we all can agree tensions are a little…crazy with how things went last episode. a little probably carried over those first few days.”
finally, there’s a shot of RENYI in frame, accompanied by the voice of jihun in his moment of anger. it plays in the background as ren is closely observing one of the contestants. “renyi, i hope this was an oversight on your part and not an intentional contingency plan for teammates you preferred,” is one of the lines being replayed. “i would have thought that the studio delta teams would have blown everyone out of the water, and yet i’m sitting here and a lime entertainment team is the most unique rendition we’ve seen so far. aren’t you a little bit embarrassed?” jihun’s voice can be heard yet again, almost haunting.
there’s a few cuts on screen as jihun’s voice continues, particularly of ren paying extra attention to little details, every small mistake like the next tick to a bomb. stevie in particular seems to have noticed, on edge, almost like he expected ren to snap at one point. but stevie isn’t the one gracing ren’s attention. it’s jaeyoung, the contestant that ren is currently watching.
after splitting off into individual practice, jaeyoung had been dancing, until something seems to have popped into his head. he pauses for a moment, walking over to his bag to take out a pen, scribbling something into his palm. unfortunately, that is the last straw for ren. “the winner of this battle is team a, but only because we can’t have two losers,” jihun’s voice plays once more as ren stands up, approaching jaeyoung, asking whoever is nearby to shut down the music.
“do you think because you got a bit of praise last time you can do whatever you want now?” even though he’s spouting harsh words, it seems as if it’s almost against his own will. and yet, it continues to spill out of him. “look around. everyone else here was ranked higher than you, and yet you’re practicing the least. is this a joke to you? because for some of us, this is a future. maybe the only future we know. and if you aren’t taking this seriously, you should leave now.” the words are eerily familiar to the things jihun had said before, whether ren noticed or not though is up to interpretation.
before jaeyoung gives his responds, the scene cuts to jaeyoung in the interview room instead. “i take every comment and feedback that’s given to me seriously. i will respond accordingly, too.” jaeyoung puts on what looks like a diplomatic smile, something that he hadn’t done before throughout the show. “i have nothing else to say here—everything i needed to say, has already been conveyed to whoever needs to hear it. that’s all.”
the scene returns to the confrontation, with jaeyoung wearing that same smile he had in the interview room. it’s almost jarring, uncanny. “thank you for your feedback, i appreciate it. earlier too, i appreciated that you steered our concept in the right direction.” it’s clear he tried to make it sound genuine and polite, but it doesn’t come off that way. “i know you’ve been paying extra close attention to me in particular since we finished discussing our concept,” it’s a subtle shade and jab from jaeyoung’s part. it’s revealed then that what jaeyoung had written were things related to the stage, plans and ideas that he had been thinking about for his own part. “i’ve been racking my head wondering what i’ve been doing wrong, realized working with a team meant compromises. it’s why i waited until individual practices to actually start brainstorming so i don’t hinder joint practice.”
when jaeyoung lifts his gaze towards ren’s, it almost feels like a challenge, despite his smile there’s clearly a fury in there that he can’t contain. “what are we to you, exactly? just tools for you to prove your worth? your second chance to show you-know-who that you deserved your prize last season? a trophy for you to present to your ceo as a 'hey-i-did-this-please-keep-me’ thing? our lives are the ones on the line, and here you are plastering your failure onto all of us. waiting for one of us to mess up, maybe. i don’t know. you know yourself best. if you can’t handle the pressure of coaching, of training, of failing to do all that—why did you sign up?” it’s a long-winded speech, only fueling the rising tension between both parties. he looks frustrated, perhaps he realized that arguing with one of last season’s winners wasn’t a very good idea?
of course, ren doesn’t take too kindly to that—that’s to be expected, he almost seems to crumble and break. whether from the pressure as whole or jaeyoung’s words, only ren knows. “do you know that every day, when you go home after filming, we go back to training? that not only do i have to make sure you’re good enough, but i have to make sure i’m not getting worse too? that at any moment, on any day, it doesn’t matter how long i’ve trained, someone can decide i don’t have what it takes? nobody here is guaranteed anything. not you. not me. not anybody. i’m grateful to be here every day, even if it’s with someone like you. you should act like it.” ren sounds tired, the stress reaching its peak.
but that seems to be the end of it, for now. the rest of the group is staring at the pair, the cameras still pointed at them. it’s an uncomfortable situation, where only silence permeates. eventually though, ren speaks up. “i need a break, i’ll leave first.”
the only one who follows after the trainee is sarang. the two enter the restroom, and that’s when the clip ends. compared to dohyun, who had gone through the same brutal criticism, it doesn’t seem like ren has a lot of faith in his team.
there is no conclusion to this fight, really. instead, stevie’s voice can be heard again. “i think i’m being more hopeful, than anything. but i guess, yeah. i am pretty confident with what we’ve done. i think everyone worked hard on it– tirelessly, too. maybe that’s why.” a hopeful lilt, despite what had been shown previously.
with that, the team’s performance is slated to begin.
the setting of the stage is a classroom, with the contestants wearing outfits corresponding to their characters. which, in this case, are a bunch of nerds—except for jiayi, tasked with the role of being the popular cheerleader that everyone is head over heels for and fighting over. as she passes by, the boys act like lovesick fools vying for her attention, following her like a bunch of ducks. each nerd brings out something cool to impress her: stevie doing a trick with his skateboard, inho with his electric guitar, jaeyoung with his small board with difficult math equations.
they all fall into formation for a dance break intro, focused on introducing jiayi as everyone’s crush, highlighting her like the sea parting as she walks on.
jaeyoung’s voice can be heard playing in the background as the dance intro continues. “i think we did pretty well. we worked together and created something fun to watch! my favourite part was working on the dance intro.” it’s shown to be a self-choreographed dance intro, with contributions from stevie, kaito and jaeyoung, something original that they had done for this stage.
the choreography starts off rather simple, but slowly begins to progress as the melody makes a change. it builds up as it goes on, eventually dropping into adrenaline. this team is taking the romantic comedy route with their storyline. everyone seems confident in their performance, with hints of cheeky smiles and boyish attitudes. there’s also a chemistry of rivals mixed in, tensions and heat rising as they compete for the hand of the popular cheerleader. there’s a few petty glances and looks, particularly from jaeyoung, but it seems in sync.
stevie gives a wink, as jiayi smoothly glides to the front. the ending slowly approaches, everyone looking like they have a good time. they strike their ending pose, before it turns to another brief skit. each nerd looks at jiayi with expectations, begging her to choose. instead, jiayi acts unimpressed, choosing no one and confidently walking off. the boys act distraught, there’s even a small yell of “wait! give me a chance!” in the midst of it all. stevie lags behind for a moment, throwing some of the confetti in the air before laughing and continuing with the chase.
after a moment of applause, the team returns to their positions on stage, awaiting their critiques.
“it was cute!” ran laughs into her microphone, her expression bright at first before it fades into a more serious look. “but your concept wasn’t cute, it was teen crush. i couldn’t help but feel that you missed the mark just a bit. teen crush is supposed to be the enviable kids, the popular students who exude confidence and invite others to be like them. i can’t help but think that only jiayi really fit that role in your performance. the rest felt a bit.. comedic. it didn’t suit the image we asked you to portray.”
“like ran said, the performance was enjoyable, but that doesn’t mean that we think it checked the boxes we assigned to you. teen crush is a tricky concept, it’s a bit vague compared to ‘sexy’ or ‘cute’ like the other teams, but groups like our PRIZM have set an example of what it should look like,” yuna sighs. “there was also tension on the team that bled into the performance, wasn’t there? it’s fine, teams fight sometimes, but you have to put that behind you before stepping on stage.”
where yuna seemed unwilling to call out any particular contestant, jihun has no such reservations. “RENYI,” he frowns, though it doesn’t seem to be directed at the trainee behind some of the drama. “i wish DOHYUN had half the fight you do. you should be upset after i tell you you’re doing something wrong. and then you should fix it. you took steps to improve and to help your team, even if they didn’t want to hear what you had to say. dohyun disappeared.”
jihun shakes his head. “as for the performance itself, i’m surprised that a sr media trainee would let this group stray so far from the concept they were assigned. surely you knew the difference, right?” he looks directly at sarang, though he doesn’t scold someone else’s trainee any more. that’s not jihun’s place, after all.
“as we said, JIAYI was the only contestant who we felt fit the teen crush concept,” ran kicks off the individual critiques on a high note, at least. “it makes sense since she was the object of everyone’s affections and the literal ‘crush’ everyone was interested in, but why couldn’t the rest of the team be less…”
“losers?” jihun suggests when ran struggles to find the words. she shoots him a glare but seems to accept that description.
“your confidence definitely shined during this performance,” ran commends the girl, “good job for not letting the boys take over or bully you into the background. you were the star and you played your role well. great job, jiayi.”
“your expressions were especially good this time,” yuna praises the girl as well, “a little bit of cheekiness fit the role really well and made you very charming to watch. the boys didn’t know what was coming, did they?” she laughs. “as ran said, your role was the most ‘teen crush’ role on the entire team. it’s just a shame you had to sell the concept all by yourself; that’s too much even to ask a more experienced idol group. you should have all worked together to build the concept, but that’s not your fault. great job.”
“i can see why none of the boys impressed you,” jihun almost laughs himself. “they didn’t impress us either. you did, however. whatever the fate of adrenaline team may be, you’ll be safe. your performance ensured that.”
while the judges had nothing but high praise for jiayi, it’s not such the case for KAITO.
“honestly, i don’t even know what to say,” yuna sighs, flipping through the papers in front of her as if searching for some sort of comment on the young man’s performance. “you completely disappeared on stage, as if you were never even there. at this stage in the competition, that’s not acceptable. you know that, right?”
“she’s right,” jihun agrees, his expression significantly darker than it had been when talking to jiayi. “you didn’t show up at all, kaito. are you taking this competition seriously? do you want to be here? it’s too late to replace you now, but at least it makes our decision easier should someone from this team have to be eliminated tonight.”
ran folds her hands in front of her, clearly unhappy about having to lay down the law with another contestant. “you’ve done well in the competition to make it this far, but your past performances don’t count toward what you showed us tonight. whatever happens… just understand that we gave you every opportunity we could.”
a deep sigh passes through all of the judges, trying to shake off the tension before they turn their attention to the next contestant.
“JAEYOUNG,” jihun begins, “did you really have to fight with renyi?” however, he doesn’t seem that upset. “was that the only way to make you wake up on stage? you were dancing like you had something to prove for the first time. this might have been your best performance yet. and while we’ve critiqued the overall concept, you played the competitive part of your character well. but that’s about it.” he straightens his papers in front of him. “rivalry is a good motivator, as i said before, but you’d be wise to listen to your seniors too. they do know what they’re talking about.”
“as jihun said, you played your role well,” ran takes over before the tension can mount any more. “there was a fierceness to your competition for jiayi’s heart that the others lacked. while nerds aren’t really the best suited for the concept we asked for, your character seemed to be the closest. you were focused and confident this time and it came across well on stage.”
yuna picks up her microphone last. “if i had one criticism, it’d be that your skills seem a bit… average. you did well with this performance as far as your character work went, but it didn’t quite translate to the way you sang and danced. like, your face had a good expression, but your body language lacked a bit. you performed cleanly, but too cleanly, if you understand what i mean.”
“thank you for your performance, jaeyoung,” ran smiles once more.
“INHO,” ran kicks off the next contestant’s critique, “do you not like the concept we assigned you?” she waits for a response, the slightest frown on a normally warm and happy face. “even if you hated it, i wish you had been a little more enthusiastic on stage. unfortunately, your feelings about this song and concept showed in your performance and impacted your ability to tell the story. we know you’re not actually interested in jiayi, but it was your responsibility to make us forget that for at least a minute. you failed, in that regard.”
yuna sighs as she picks up her microphone. “unfortunately, it’s not just your acting performance that suffers when you dislike a song or concept so much. you’re a better performer than we saw tonight. you can sing and dance better than what we saw. even if you hate it, you should put your energy into pretending otherwise. you owe it to your team to leave your ego at the door when you walk into this competition. you’re all at the same level, you know that right? you’re not better than them for thinking you’re too mature for the teen crush concept.”
“more than that, it’s disrespectful to us, the judges, who assigned your teams,” jihun frowns. “as we said, we chose concepts we thought would fit each contestant or challenge you to put on the best possible performance. do you not trust us to know what we’re doing? do you think you know better?” jihun stares down the contestant, waiting for an apology before continuing. “you should be worried about your rank tonight.” he warns.
“STEVEN, on the other hand,” jihun changes his attention to the final contestant on the team, “lived and breathed the concept, didn’t you?” a slight smile appears on the man’s face, the smallest sign of approval of the contestant before him. “were you a nerd in school? you almost played the part too well,” he laughs, almost mockingly if it weren’t for the way he had praised stevie before. “you looked like you were having fun on stage, which suits the concept. if you hadn’t gone for a nerd concept, i think you would have suited teen crush even better than jiayi.”
“can you show us the skateboard thing again?” ran beams brightly, enthralled by stevie’s performance. “i hadn’t seen anyone do that on stage before! while i do think you were a bit more cute than teen crush, i think it was more of the fault of the character you were assigned rather than your own performance. it’s alright to be a bit of a loser, but you have to be an endearing loser. you fit that role well, great job on this performance.”
“besides the fact that you acted well,” yuna takes over, “your dancing was also the best on your team. you seemed to feel the music move through you and had a great natural groove. honestly, i kept finding my eyes landing on you during the performance in a good way; i was having fun watching you perform. great job, steven. you’ve really grown a lot.” yuna smiles.
with all performances concluded, all three teams return to the stage with jian standing in the middle of them. “after much deliberation, the judges have come to a decision on which team is the winner of the concept evaluation,” she holds up a folded card, the results written inside and hidden from view. “the team in first place and safe from any elimination is… PUZZLE TEAM!”
a moment for celebration and congratulations is shared before the contestants calm down again. puzzle team leaves the stage for the moment, all members safe, while NONSTOP and ADRENALINE teams will be losing members.
“we’ll start with our last place team, ADRENALINE,” jian announces. “JAEYOUNG, JIAYI, STEVIE, please step forward.” as the three contestants step forward, spotlights shining down on them, the music suddenly turns intense. “the three of you are… safe! please return back stage for the moment while eliminations are decided.” the three teammates say a quick good bye to the remainder of their team before disappearing backstage. only KAITO and INHO are left.
“one of you will be going home,” jian tells them. “unfortunately, the contestant we’ll be saying good bye to is… KAITO.”
“kaito, you just didn’t make an impression on us at all with this performance, so we had to let you go. we hope that you continue to improve your abilities and we see you on stage again someday,” ran informs the eliminated contestant, an unhappy expression on her face as if she didn’t really want to eliminate anyone at all. alas, rules are rules.
a moment for good byes is given before both contestants return backstage, where a camera captures the tearful moments with the entirety of adrenaline team saying good bye to their eliminated teammate. the moment is only a few seconds and yet still seems too long before the scene returns to the stage where nonstop team awaits the same fate.
“JINGREN and YUWOL, please step forward,” jian asks them. “the two of you are… NOT SAFE.” the remainder of the contestants are dismissed backstage again as the two bottom ranked members of nonstop team are left alone with jian to announce their fate.
“do you have any final words for our viewers?” jian asks the two, giving them each a moment to speak before she returns to the task at hand. “i’m sorry to say that the final contestant leaving us tonight is… JINGREN.”
“jingren, you had the unfortunate coincidence of just being the lowest ranking person on an otherwise very talented team,” yuna explains. “it was a hard decision to make, please believe us. unfortunately, someone had to go home and the others on your team out-performed you in this one particular performance. you’re still very much a talented individual and we have no doubt that this is not the last we’ll see from you.”
as with adrenaline team, nonstop team is given time backstage to say goodbye to their eliminated teammate.
with the eliminations complete, all contestants are brought back to the stage to see the rankings and reveal the next episode.
“the next episode will be our LIVE FINALE,” jian announces, “you will all be performing original songs, never before seen or heard on any stage, all in front of a live audience of next gen fans! the fans have voted for what songs they’d like each of you to perform, so let’s see our teams for the finale!”
the screen changes to the lineup of each team, a short snipped of the song assigned to them playing as the names appear on screen.
“the top three ranked contestants will be offered a contract from any company of their choosing,” jian explains the stakes again to the contestants, “with the runner-ups receiving a contract from one of the three companies, should they want to sign them. this final performance will decide your fate, so please prepare diligently! we’ll see you LIVE on the next episode!”
do better plays louder in the background before the credits begin to play on screen.
a short recap of the last episode opens up episode three, reminding the viewer of the stakes. this is the first team battle but more importantly it’s the first elimination round. at the end of today, at least three contestants will be going home.
“as a reminder,” next gen emcee RHEE JIAN reminds the viewers at home, “the winning teams will be safe from elimination this round. of the losing teams, our judges will decide who will be continuing on in the competition and who will be sent home. this is the time for our contestants to prove why they deserve to be here, how much passion they have for being an idol, and if they have the talent to back it up. good luck to everyone!”
the three judges are seen taking their seats in front of the stage that’s been prepared for the contestants today.
“this challenge is your expertise,” SEO RAN, sr media ceo, remarks to her co-judge and the ceo of studio delta YOON JIHUN. “is there anything in particular that you’re looking for in the performances today?”
“i know that you will be judging their stage presence and character, and YUNA will be paying attention to their basic skills, but i’m genuinely looking for someone who can take one of these iconic songs and make us forget about the original,” jihun explains to his fellow judges. “anyone can simply cover any of these. they’re popular, everyone knows how to sing and dance to them. but how can our contestants take this base and make it something completely their own? that’s what i’m looking for.”
the two female judges nod their heads in understanding. “last year’s FROST team showcased something similar,” yuna, the representative of lime entertainment, reminds her fellow judges. a short clip of the performance from last year reminds the viewers in case they hadn’t tuned in before.
“exactly,” jihun explains. “they remixed the song and created a new story with their stage concept. and their performance was impeccable. that’s the sort of performance i’d like to see from all of our teams today. i’m hopeful that they’ll make this a hard decision for us.”
“we’ll see,” yuna smiles tightly, as if unconvinced that they’ll truly be impressed by each and every one of the current contestants.
“it looks like our first group battle is the representatives from your company,” ran nods towards yuna after glancing at her cue cards.
as if on cue, jian calls their attention from the stage. “our first battle will be between TEAM A and TEAM B for CAKE by PRIZM,” she announces. the two teams file on stage from either side, joining jian as she stands in the center. “do you have anything you’d like to say to your teammates or the competition before we begin?”
she takes a moment to let each team member say a few words, encouraging one another or challenging their rivals, and all of the reactions that entails.
“now, if we’re all ready to begin, let’s see TEAM A’s performance,” she announces, gesturing to her left side and the three contestants lead by LEE SEOJUN.
as the contestants and emcee file off stage, the scene changes to the preparations for this battle. it was a hard week for both teams, it seems, as short cuts of both HWANG YEJUN and KIM ARA on the verge of tears in the practice rooms flit across the screen. just what could have caused the heartbreak and tragedy during practice?
the camera decides to focus on YAMAMOTO KAITO first anyway, showing the young man seeking out his designated coach for help with his vocals.
“i wanted to do my best to not only improve myself, but to also not let my teammates down,” kaito explains to the camera in the interview room. “i know i still need to work harder to get my singing up.”
“make sure to sing from your diaphragm. it helps with controlling your breathing,” seojun explains to the contestant. they practice that for a moment before seojun recommends another technique: “humming and lip buzzing are easy ways to warm up your voice,” he suggests. the pair work through a few exercises for a moment before the scene changes again.
kaito comes across as a very diligent contestant. he and KIM ARA put their heads together as they start discussing the concepts for their performance.
“had a chance to think anything up?” ara asks, “wouldn’t mind brainstorming up concepts with you before we bring it back to our coach and the team.”
“maybe we could put our own little 'twist’ on the concept?” he suggests, “something different than the judges are even used to seeing… how does this look?” kaito stops playing with his phone and shows something on the screen to ara. “we could even throw in some concepts that others usually wouldn’t do? maybe like volleyball players, basketball players?”
the two continue to work together on the concept of their performance, throwing ideas between them. “i know that this is a competition,” kaito’s voice is overlaid on the scene where he’s writing down all of the ideas they’re sharing between them, “but we're still a team and have to rely on each other for what we each lack in.”
it’s ara, seen sitting in the interview room, who reveals the concept they decided on. “we ended up determining that we could do something that really showcases us as a unit, so we ended up as a volleyball team,” she explains, “our outfits were comfortable and cute in the end! and we changed some of our hand movements to match the sports moves.”
it seems that the highlight of this team was seojun’s patience and leadership. during a completely different practice session, it’s YOON EUNWOL who’s calling for aid. "seojun… help," he pleads with his coach. rather than ask for help with his performance, however, it appears that his problem is the sheer amount of food he has balanced in his arms. "i have made a grave error." it’s a bit comedic, to say the least.
however, figuring out how to make the food disappear among the four-person team turns out to be the least of their concerns.
"i really, really don't want to get yelled at, I haven't been yelled at since bootcamp,” he confesses to seojun. "i can dance a bit? just a bit?" he pinches his fingers together, gesturing how little confidence he has in that particular ability. seojun is quick to reassure him, of course.
“seeing everyone learning what i did before just makes me happy,” seojun’s voice is heard over a clip of him helping eunwol with the choreography. “and i like being able to help do so.”
“when I felt I was behind or messing up I just looked to him and without a mean word he would help,” eunwol’s voice is heard as well, and the scene fades to him sitting in the interview room. “it is nice how someone can give advice without being rude, hmm?”
the last comment is clearly loaded, implying it was meant to be heard by someone else’s ears other than the staff conducting the interviews. as if on cue, the scene shifts back to eunwol’s conversation with seojun. "that judge had the nerve to tell me to go because I am scared to be here…” he complains aloud to his coach.
to remind the audience what eunwol’s talking about, a clip of jihun’s harsh words about eunwol from last episode plays again: “if you don’t want to be here, you’re welcome to leave. there’s thousands of children and young adults around the world who want to be exactly in the spot you’re in right now. if you’re not grateful for this opportunity, you may as well do them a favor and drop out now.”
seojun, to his credit, responds very diplomatically. “sometimes being unique for a challenge is good but some you gotta follow the dance as it is.”
as this portion of the broadcast seems to be wrapping up, eunwol takes over the sceen in the interview room once more. “i do have a question,” he asks the staff. “do the judges get to know us? i never saw the first season… i assumed the judges would interact more with us, and would want to get to know us.”
an awkward pause follows his question, no answer seemingly given at this time.
finally, the scene shifts to reveal just what that scene of ara’s tears had been from the beginning of the episode. she leaves practice abruptly, the redness in her face a clear sign of her frustration. ara doesn’t make it far, certainly not past the watchful eyes of the cameras, when she buries her face in her hands. is she crying?
“hey, you feeling alright?” seojun is the only one to approach her during her emotionally fragile time. “whatever is on your mind, i’m here for you. tell me whatever you need to. i want the best for you and our team.”
ara hardly hesitates to let her fears and frustrations out into the world. maybe seojun is just that good of a comforting presence, or maybe she just really needed to let it out into the world. “the competition is just so fast paced, i’m… i’m trying not to let it get to me but i’m getting so overwhelmed.”
she does her best to hide her face, but the cameras catch a glimpse of tears regardless. “i want us to do well. i just want to do well,” she confesses.“the idea of elimination is also getting me even more anxious.”
“overthinking is too easy in a competition like this. all you can do is the best you can.” seojun tries to comfort her. “just do the best you can and i’d still be proud of you. i believe you got this.”
the scene remains unresolved, the viewer never knowing if ara will truly be alright after all of this or not.
the time for the first CAKE performance draws near and the team of four are seen on stage wearing the simple sporty uniforms that ara had described earlier. after a brief pause to create some tension, the music finally begins and the quartet begin to sing and dance.
“oh?” yuna’s brow furrows in a frown, the scene shifting mid-performance to her reaction. “but they didn’t change anything about the song?”
“they seemed to have gone for a sporty concept,” ran points out. “but isn’t that close to PRIZM’s concept in the first place?”
jihun says nothing, but his expression remains unimpressed.
the song is allowed to continue uninterrupted for the remainder of their performance. they do change up the choreography a bit, as ara had mentioned before, but ultimately the song remains mostly identical to PRIZM’s original performance of the number.
“i did everything i could and i know that rankings can still go up and down. but i did the best i could so i hope it shows.” ara’s voice is heard as the camera focuses on each and every contestant individually at the conclusion of their performance. it even captures eunwol’s wink and salute.
the contestants finally are given permission to relax as the lighting changes and the judges prepare to deliver their critique.
“we’ll give you your individual critique first, and then our evaluation of the performance as a whole,” jihun explains to the first group up to perform. “i want to start with ARA. why are you holding back? don’t you know that this is a competition?”
the man sighs. “i hope we didn’t damage your confidence with anything we said before. i can tell that you were trying to blend well into your group, but instead you should have just made sure they could all perform on your level. don’t sell yourself short, that’s not how you’ll improve.”
“i agree, i would have liked to see more from you, ara,” ran’s words are much warmer, though she essentially says the same thing as jihun. “you’re a skilled performer. i feel like this choreography could have really shown off your top skills if you allowed it to. i hope to see more confidence from you in future performances.”
“my favorite parts were when you were in the center,” yuna smiles kindly. “i think we could all tell that’s when you let loose and went all-out. it’s smart of you to conserve energy when you’re not the main focus, too. but if you could do that without losing a bit of your spark… wow, you’d be unstoppable.”
“i also want to give props to KAITO,” yuna continues. “you’ve improved a lot in a short time. i think i can speak for all of the judges when i say that we noticed how much your vocals have improved in just a week.” she glances around to ran and jihun, who nod their agreement. “good job.”
jihun picks up his microphone to continue kaito’s critique next. “i would just caution you not to neglect your other skills while you’re trying to improve one,” he warns. “your vocals saw great improvement, but i didn’t notice anything special about your dancing this time. you could have done better.”
“i think you shine very brightly on stage,” ran compliments the contestant with a smile. “you were fun to watch during this performance. were you enjoying it?” she waits for a confirmation before continuing. “that’s what’s important. if you look happy while performing, your audience is going to feel that as well.”
“we weren’t actually planning to say too much about our coaches,” yuna speaks again, gesturing to seojun. “but i did quickly want to point out how great a job SEOJUN did at managing everyone for this performance. you can tell that the team worked well together under his leadership. you’re already much more experienced than the team you’re leading, so we won’t say too much about your performance skills, but kudos for being such a great team leader.”
when it comes time for EUNWOL’s critique from the judges, jihun’s face goes dark again. “seojun,” he asks the coach instead of addressing the contestant immediately at first, “did you know that eunwol was going to make a cutesy gesture at the end of your performance? or did he decide that on his own once he was actually on stage?”
“you don’t want to be yelled at, but you keep doing things that make me want to scold you,” jihun’s full attention is directed at eunwol now. “do you think you’re better than us? smarter? i don’t think you fully grasp what this relationship is. you can consider next gen to be similar to a job interview. if you make it to the finale and are signed, i, or seo ran, or KWON JAEHYUN will be your boss. we are not here to make friends with you. we are here to push you to see how far your potential goes and if we want to make an investment in you to continue. right now, that investment seems like more trouble than it’s worth to me.”
hardly anyone dares to speak after jihun’s rant, and still so early in the episode. however, none of the judges look particularly happy with eunwol. perhaps sending shade toward one of the ceos was not the best move to make.
“we are getting to know you,” ran tries to explain in a more gentle manner, though even she seems a bit perturbed. “but as jihun said, we are not here to be your friends. we’re learning about you through what you show us on stage, and we’re monitoring your activities in practice. it’s not helpful to you or your growth at this point to sit down and ask your favorite color, let alone all of the other contestants we’re trying to help cultivate on this show. i hope you’re able to keep that in mind as we move forward.”
“i can speak from the perspective as a performer as well as one of the judges,” yuna frowns into her microphone. “you come across as extremely disrespectful, whether you mean to or not. it’s a trait that’s broken countless idols’ reputations with the public. no matter how hurt you are, how upset you may be with someone, it’s our responsibility to smile and say ‘thank you for your concern’ anyway. it doesn’t matter if you can sing or dance if your attitude is poor. and i do think you have the talent, you wouldn’t be here otherwise. i’m just not convinced you have the personality to survive this industry at this point.”
“as for your performance as a team,” jihun takes the lead on the critique again, “it’s unfortunate that you seemed to lack creativity as a whole. the song was identical, the choreography was only very minorly edited, and volleyball isn’t all that far off from PRIZM’s original concept. they’re a group with a rather sporty image, after all. i’m afraid i was a bit disappointed by that aspect of your performance.”
“while that may be true, i think you all worked well as a unit,” ran speaks the positive out into the world, hopefully cheering up the team that’s certainly been through enough scolding already. “you looked like you were enjoying the stage. i’d guess that a few of you are PRIZM fans? right?” she smiles as she waits for someone to admit to it. “well done.”
“you performance skills are certainly improving as well,” yuna adds. “if i didn’t know it myself, i might not have believed that was your first time performing on stage together as a group. as a whole, you complimented each other’s strengths and filled in for your weaknesses very well. it was an engaging performance, if not the most inspired.”
“thank you,” jian takes over, allowing team A a chance to bow and thank the judges before they’re instructed to leave the stage. “after the teamwork powerhouse and mvp captain seojun, how will TEAM B compare?”
the second team in question are seen waiting in the wings briefly before the scene changes to the practice rooms again.
ITO SEIRA is the first focus of the team, the young woman shown in two split screens asking almost the same question of her teammates: to CHAERIN, “think you could help me with the dance?” to YEJUN, she asks “wanna help me with my lines?”
the scene with yejun is the one that the editors decide to focus on first, blowing that section of the screen up until it takes over entirely. “you seem to be good at singing,” she flatters her teammate with a giggle, “and i’m really not.”
“i’ll help how i can,” yejun promises, a kindness about him. and he is a good singer; the scene cuts briefly to his practice sessions for this episode and previous ones, even his audition. he has one of the better voices on the show, with so many dancers present in this season. the editors seem to think it’s a shame that he hasn’t been featured more prominently before. he’s really only number fifteen? the captions question the judgment of the representatives from each company.
“there’s some parts where my voice is supposed to go up a lot, but my voice can’t really do that,” seira explains.
“it could be out of your range,” yejun suggests with a frown, seemingly concerned about the ability of his teammate. “you should be working on your scales, that’s basic for every musician and singer.” is he calling her out or giving genuine advice?
the scene shifts to her request of chaerin. the coach, of course, is happy to oblige. “that’s what i’m here for, right?” she answers seira.
LEE CHAERIN is popular among the contestants who can’t dance, it seems. YUWOL, yejun, and seira all come to her with concerns about looking awkward on stage. she takes her time with each of them, diagnosing the unique problems in their performance and making gentle suggestions to help them improve. “i did spend the most time working on the choreography and dancing with everybody,” chaerin admits in the interview room. “while they're all talented in their own ways, it was clear that they didn't have too much experience dancing.”
the scene cuts to yejun and HAN YUWOL. while chaerin had just been explaining how talented her team is, even if that talent doesn’t necessarily include dance, yejun seems to be continuously messing up the piece that he and yuwol are practicing together. yuwol, to his credit, doesn’t seem to be getting frustrated even though he’s playing violin flawlessly. yejun, despite how adept he proved to be in his audition, looks like he forgot how to play the guitar overnight.
“sorry,” yejun apologizes, “i’m just… not feeling well, i guess.”
“were your parents supportive of your dreams to be a singer?” a disembodied voice is heard beyond the camera as yejun sits in front of the backdrop of the interview room. yejun smiles in a way that betrays how much that question hurts him.
“they’re not,” he admits. “i’ve wanted this since i was just a kid, though. i never really stopped thinking about that dream.”
yuwol stops their practice. “are you alright?” he asks. “i know you’re skilled with the guitar too. it’s not that you’re fumbling your playing… but something seems to be on your mind.”
“no, you’re right,” yejun sighs, “there is something on my mind. that call i just took? it was my parents. they’re fine, i just…” he trails off, seemingly choked up by his own words. just what had his parents said on the phone? at least the editors decide to respect his privacy that much.
“there’s a big mental battle,” yejun’s voice is heard over a closeup on his own face, the camera just barely catching the tears that well up on his eyes, even if they never fall.
the scene shifts again, this time to yejun and chaerin as she helps him through his dance practice. “i’ll practice until my feet fall off… or i get it right. whatever comes first,” he promises her.
“i’ve always loved music,” yejun’s voice is heard over the scene again. “knowing that this performance will be the first eliminations, and that it’s the first time i have a team that’s relying on me to do my best… it’s a lot of pressure, you know? i’m trying to stay focused on the important things and to just give my best performance no matter what.”
the scene shifts to the team on stage. unlike team A’s bright, sporty concept, team B has opted for a grungier look, akin to villains about to rob a bank. their beginning is also entirely different with yuwol holding his violin at the ready with the bow hovering just above the strings, yejun with his guitar, and seira seated behind a piano.
the lights go on and the music starts rather hauntingly, the chorus of cake reimaged as a band concept with chaerin singing the lyrics in a rather stylized way. they only perform like that for the duration of the chorus, however. the team sets down their instruments and steps forward on the stage to sing and dance PRIZM’s song as it was originally imagined, though the background music remains entirely different from the original.
“we added a twist to the song, constructed a scarier flavor for the concept we were going for. leaned into a thrilling story, following a few pop culture media we thought of. i am confident, i know we performed with our best.” yuwol’s voice is heard as the team strikes their final poses, the camera catching a close-up of each contestant as an ending fairy.
a short applause can be heard from the judges as the contestants finally relax, standing at attention for their critique.
“i suppose we should start with our feedback,” jihun announces, glancing at his fellow judges. “let’s start with… han yuwol.”
however, it’s yuna who gives feedback first. “there’s no doubt that you’ve already improved,” she smiles. “it looks like chaerin helped you a lot with your dance, did she?” she waits for confirmation before continuing. “it’s refreshing to see that you take our advice to heart and can actually make changes in your performance rather quickly. it’s an important trait for a trainee or idol to have.”
“whose idea was this concept?” ran asks, curious more than anything. “yuwol, do you have any acting experience? you suit this vibe surprisingly well… i don’t know if we should be concerned or not!” she laughs, joking with the contestants before continuing her review. “it’ll be interesting to see how you handle other concepts moving forward.”
finally, jihun says his piece. “your violin skills added to the unique stylization of this performance,” he seems to approve. “however, i want to caution you against relying on them for the remainder of the competition. it served you well this time, but we’re producing idols, not concert musicians. we’ll be observing your other performance skills more closely from now on.” well, at least it wasn’t a scolding.
“yejun, i’ll say the same word of caution to you with that guitar,” jihun changes his attention to another teammate. “don’t think i haven’t noticed your passion, though. i appreciate anyone who puts their entire life on the line to meet their dreams. there’s a sort of charm to desperation that can’t be taught.” it’s unclear whether jihun is giving a compliment of if he’s just revealing he’s a bit of a sadist.
“your abilities have improved as well,” yuna nods approvingly. “chaerin taught you all well, as expected of a lime entertainment trainee. you’re more stable than you were last time, which is great considering you have one of the better voices in this competition. it’s about time we finally let that show properly. great work.”
finally, ran picks up her microphone. “i just praised yuwol’s acting, but i’m afraid i’ll have to say the opposite of you. you looked a little too focused on singing and dancing that without the costume, i would have never known the story you were telling. i just want you to be a little more aware of your expression for future performances. it’s what makes a good performer truly great.”
“good job, yejun,” yuna cheers him on one last time before turning her attention to the final participant in this group. “ito seira…” she murmurs, “what are we going to do with you?”
“i suppose i should at least praise you for having the sense to seek out more experienced individuals to make up for where you lack,” yuna sighs, “but i really don’t think you need to be praised for that right now. aren’t you worried about holding your team back by asking them to practice twice as hard and teach you everything? collaboration is a good skill, but you need to learn how to improve on your own as well. yejun shouldn’t be teaching you the basics of singing when he needed to work on his performance too.”
“you shine on stage,” ran at least opens with something nicer to say, “it’s clear that you’re a performer. but… how do i say this…”
jihun interrupts with his own commentary: “the circus is also full of performers,” he deadpans, completely hijacking ran’s critique. “i hope you’re taking this seriously and not just goofing off during this opportunity. this is twice now that you’ve fallen during rehearsals after we’ve warned you to take better care of your body, isn’t it? i hope that you keep in mind that we’re looking for singers and dancers and not a court jester doing slapstick comedy.”
ran shoots jihun a sharp glare, her normally kind disposition shattered for a moment as her irritation with the man shows through. she doesn’t, however, correct anything that he says.
“did you re-record the entire track?” jihun asks the team. “who arranged that? considering the time you had to prepare everything, it wasn’t bad.” of course he can’t give an outright compliment, however he’s definitely giving more praise than he had to the other team. “this is the type of performance we were looking for with this mission. it was almost unrecognizable from the original.”
“i want to know more about the story,” ran’s frustration with her fellow ceo melts away quickly in front of the cameras, smiling at the team in front of the judges instead. “i feel like you all were halfway there with it. you could have modified the choreography to better tell the story of a heist, or fighting superheroes, or whatever it was you were doing. it was a bit hard to tell from our point of view.”
“i’ll admit, i forgot about PRIZM for a moment there,” yuna says with a smile. “if you had done something different with the choreography, i might have forgotten them entirely. this is how you take a song and make it your own. you played to your own talents well and made the song have a new meaning by introducing the darker concept. well done.”
instead of team b being dismissed following their performance as team a had been, both teams are called back to the stage as they had been in the very beginning. “i think it’s time to announce the winners of our first battle,” jian announces. “i have the rulings from the judges in my hand here. the winner of cake battle is…”
“TEAM B!”
there’s time for celebration and mourning between the two teams before jihun picks up his microphone once more. this is, after all, his specialty. “ultimately, it came down to who reimagined the song better,” he explains the reasoning. “and team b won by a landslide.”
“unfortunately, that means a member of team a will be sent home today,” jian draws the attention back to the stage. “we’re so sorry to see you go and hope that you continue your idol dreams, even if this was not the right opportunity for you at this time. the contestant eliminated is…”
well, that won’t be revealed until the end of the episode!
the scene changes abruptly to the next song battle, TEAM A and TEAM B for PINK VENOM now standing on either side of jian on stage as she announces that they’ll be participating in the next team battle. “wish your opponents luck,” she tells each team, giving each captain a ‘fighting’ gesture with her fist before team B is dismissed from the stage for the time being.
like the cake teams, it’s immediately apparent that the trainee coach was an important piece of the puzzle for TEAM A. ZHOU RENYI is a familiar face to returning fans from the previous seasons of next gen and it seems that his hardworking attitude has not faded in the slightest since becoming a trainee. he’s seen first helping HAN JUEUN with her vocal parts in the practice room, sitting behind a keyboard and plunking out the notes she’s meant to hit.
“it’s easy to go flat with this song,” he explains to his teammate. “it’s doesn’t really move out of those same three or four notes for the most part. so if you don’t support every single one, they’ll start to muddy together. especially when you start moving around with the dance.”
jueun begins singing along immediately, diligently practicing the notes as renyi had instructed her to. but his critique isn’t over yet; it seems that the studio delta trainees take after their ceo to a certain degree. “watch your english,” he warns, “the pronunciation of ‘this that’ and 'taste that’; they mean different things but right now i can’t hear the difference.”
“this that, taste that,” jueun repeats again, trying to get it right.
“better,” renyi finally relents.
jueun isn’t the only contestant seeking out the former champion’s help; SONG JIAYI takes a moment during practice to strike up a conversation, asking the tough questions that may very well help her through this competition.
“what was the hardest part about last season?” she asks, was it performing, or something else?”
renyi takes his time, pausing for a gulp of water before he gives her the answers she’s looking for. he glances over, the camera following his eyes as they watch the other pink venom team practicing in the same room. “that guy over there,” he speaks in english at first, nose wrinkling up annoyedly. but he answers more seriously a moment later, back in korean for the viewers at home: “being in the public eye the whole time. my dream was always being a songwriter; i never really saw myself as anyone people would watch, or even want to watch.”
“i think renyi was a good mentor to us,” jiayi tell the cameras in the interview room. “i couldn’t have asked for better!”
“ren is a little intimidating at first because of his actual status,” ASAKURA TOUMA also sings ren’s praises in the same room, albeit without jiayi present. “but it’s clear he wants the best for the team just like anyone else.”
it seems that the chemistry of this team went over well in general; shots of each of the teammates helping each other out flash over the screen one after another. "hey, how do you think this line sounds? you can be completely honest,” jueun asks touma.
“i suppose… seeing how this song is like, you could be a lot more firm? powerful?” touma suggests.
jueun takes the feedback well, nodding as she replies: “i get what you mean.”
this team in particular seems to be preparing a lot for their performance. as the days roll by, they’re seen practicing with prop weapons, discussing comic book character makeup, choreographing a new dance break, and arranging the song to their liking. they’re certainly taking the customization of this challenge seriously.
“our concept is cool! we’re doing venom—like, the comic book character. it made sense with the title of the song,” touma explains to the cameras, clearly enthused about the concept.
“our decision to get rid of the rap verses may have been a little bold since we were switching it up quite a bit,” jueun reveals in a separate shot.
pink venom without quartz’s iconic rap lines? excuse the editors for being a bit dubious, but that certainly is a bold move!
in practice, the team is just as dedicated to coming up with new ideas. "what if we all took turns coming to the center, so everyone their chance to be at the front?" jiayi suggests.
“yes! that’s a good idea, each one of us deserves the center spotlight.” touma approves.
it turns out that jueun herself was the artist behind the makeup on team a’s faces. a short shot of the team backstage shows her applying the venom-inspired face paint. with all of their team chemistry, surely they’ll be able to pull off a good performance, right?
there’s only one way to find out!
a rather eerie vibe overtakes the stage as the decked-out pink venom team waits for the music to begin. and begin it does, the team showing off unique choreography with prop weapons introduced to the song. and they’re right; removing the raps and moving the dance break up to replace them (with entirely new choreography), and adding another chorus where the break used to be certainly adds a new spin to the song. it’s unrecognizable from the original, but is that a good thing?
the camera is sure to capture each member’s ending fairy moment as the song comes to a close. however, that also means that its time for judgment to begin.
“i suppose we should start with touma,” jihun begins, taking the lead on the judges’ reviews again. “i suppose i should just be glad you listened to us to some extent. you worked on your vocal performance, sure, but it seems like it was a bit of an afterthought, wasn’t it?” he gives the young man a look, asking him to be honest with himself. “dance may be more fun, but let’s not neglect the hard work, alright?”
“improvement is improvement,” yuna admits, piggybacking off of what jihun already said. “but if what jihun suspects is true, and singing still took less of a priority for you this round, imagine how quickly you could improve if you made an effort to be as excited about singing as you are about dancing. just to keep in mind.” she smiles.
“enough on that,” ran waves the opinions of the other two off dismissively. “you were clearly passionate about this concept and it makes you a very engaging contestant to watch. i hope you’re able to keep this energy throughout future performances and have fun on every stage, regardless. good job, touma.”
ran turns her attention to jueun next. “ah, jueun… i wanted to root for you so badly after that strong opening line but i’m so sorry to say you didn’t keep that same energy through the whole performance. i feel like i lost you a bit in there, which was a shame. you’re a wonderful performer i want to see more from.”
“we can tell your skills are improving, at least,” yuna jumps in. “but i have to agree with ran… honestly, i think your team did you a bit dirty with this arrangement. they seemed to be playing to their own strengths more than yours. advocate for yourself next time! if they’re going to add a dance break, shouldn’t they have helped you shine by playing up your strengths as well?”
jihun considers his words carefully before he speaks, seemingly undecided on what verdict he wants to give. finally, he picks up his microphone. “i think this boils down to pink venom not being a very good concept on you,” he admits. “as yuna said, we can see you’re improving. this song did not highlight that for you, though. it’s a shame that your teammates didn’t notice that they weren’t doing you any favors. i hope they weren’t counting on your elimination should the other pink venom team perform better.”
he sends a sharp look around at the fellow contestants, perhaps a warning to work on their teamwork.
“renyi, i hope this was an oversight on your part and not an intentional contingency plan for teammates you preferred.” he remarks sharply, scolding the coach from his company more than the contestant who was most affected.
“can i gush over jiayi tough?” ran changes the conversation quickly, moving to the next contestant. “this concept suits you very well. your expressions were good and you looked confident throughout the whole song, which embodies quartz’s energy so well. the girl crush concept is truly meant for you.”
“we can also see your improvement very clearly,” yuna adds, “your vocals are getting better with every performance and it’s good to see you maintain your confidence when our critiques can easily make a contestant overthink and panic. we’re here to point out your flaws so you can improve upon them, and you’ve taken that very well.”
“if i had to describe it,” jihun once again pauses to choose his words carefully before continuing, “it’s like you truly embody the concept of quartz. if we were auditioning for another member, you’d certainly fit the bill. but we’re not.” of course he can’t simply give praise. it’s unclear whether he liked jiayi’s performance or not.
“as for the performance itself…” he sighs, leaning down to rest his head in his hand as he looks over the notes he’s written in front of him. “don’t you think it was a bit too much?”
a pause falls over the room as judges and contestants alike wait for the studio delta ceo to explain his thoughts.
“quartz has a girl crush, feminine power sort of image. i suppose by bringing in super heroes and weapons you wanted to emphasize that, but the arrangement was just… bad. the dance break, supposedly the climax of the song, happened in the first half of the performance and the rest felt like a letdown. taking away the raps may have shown your talents better, but it took away the power of the song. it just felt a bit… underwhelming.” he sighs. “at least you tried.”
“i’ll admit, jihun is the real producer among us,” ran smiles apologetically. “he’ll know the technicalities better than i would. but purely as an audience member, it felt like the intensity was here,” she holds her hand parallel to the table, about nose-hight. “and it stayed there throughout the performance. something that starts here,” she holds her hand lower and as she speaks, moves it upwards, “and then escalates as it goes, maybe dips a bit, but then finishes with a bang!” she raises her hand up above her head, “usually is more captivating.”
“i think you did well to play to your strengths,” yuna at least has compliments for the team, “but i see what jihun and ran are saying. if you’re not good rappers, this was a good time to learn. renyi, you could have stepped up to help too. even if your rapping wasn’t good, it’s not like you’d get kicked out for it like your contestants would. better strategizing and use of your coach might have improved this performance, if you had thought about it.”
“ah, i’m sure you wanted to hear more praise than that for all of your hard work,” jian smiles sympathetically at team a. “don’t worry! we haven’t seen team b yet; you could still win this!” she cheers them on once more before they’re dismissed from the stage for now, replaced by pink venom TEAM B.
perhaps one of the most interesting storylines on this team is that of JANG HYUNKI. after coming into the competition at one of the lowest ranks, he suddenly rose to the top and secured the male center spot after last episode!
“after seeing my name at the bottom, i didn't dare consider the idea of jumping all the way to first place. i just wanted to show the judges i was much more than i showed in my audition,” he explains in the interview room. “clearly, i did something to please the judges.”
“do you think you can maintain that ranking?” a voice from beyond the camera asks him.
"i hope so," hyunki laughs while he responds, perhaps giddy at the thought.
“i'm happy we all seem excited for the song," hyunki enthuses to his coach, PARK DOHYUN.
“i'm a sucker for catchy girl group songs,” dohyun admits, “and i think we can bring the right energy with all the different strengths we have."
it does appear that the team is working well together. it’s hyunki again who approaches MOON JORDAN during a solo practice session, catching him while he’s taking a break. based on the sweat on his face and soaked into his shirt, jordan had only been resting for a very short moment.
"hey, not looking half bad," hyunki compliments his teammate openly.
“thank you, thank you. i’m just trying my best especially in moments like this,” jordan responds, immediately stopping his break and putting away his phone. this team is full of hard workers, it would seem.
the pair begin practice quickly, discussing which parts they need the most work on and which they think they can leave for later.
“i can tell you now, there was definitely not one single bad moment working with the venom flower crew,” jordan tells the cameras in the interview room, absolutely gushing about his teammates. “although it’s different personalities jumbled into one team, we all worked so well together during this process.”
while hyunki and jordan clearly know their way around a practice room, there seems to be a different story from RYU SIWOO. “i’ve never danced or rapped in my life,” siwoo admits to hyunki. how in the world did he make it onto the show with such little experience? did luxury-brand boy buy his way into the spotlight?
despite his glaring inadequacies, siwoo still seems very positive about the whole experience. maybe it’s, again, because the team gets along so well. “i’m sure we’ll do well. from what i gather we have to have good… chemistry? to pull off the rapping. i think we’re already halfway there.”
after the camera flits between a few more miscellaneous practice scenes, it finally comes time for the team’s performance.
"we wanted to play with the different connotations and ideas surrounding the words 'pink' and 'venom,'" hyunki explains, his voice overlaid as the camera pans across their dimly lit figures waiting for their stage to start. "i thought a lot about how pink brings up thoughts of softness, cuteness, and overall gentle things while venom is, obviously, totally opposite. it was fun to visually play with those ideas through our styling. we all also picked out a flower that is poisonous but still beautiful to wear.” the camera takes the opportunity to zoom in on hyunki’s foxglove charm, so small that it may have been missed if it hadn’t been pointed out.
finally, the music starts. just like with the first cake team, it’s apparent immediately that there’s been almost no alteration done to the arrangement or choreography of the song, simply dressing themselves up in themed costumes and performing the song relying on their own stage presence to make it unique.
the camera pans across the judges’ disgruntled faces yet again.
the only saving grace is the performance itself; the chemistry of the team is certainly there and even siwoo, who self-proclaimed his lack of experience, seems to embody the quartz vibe exceptionally well.
as the performance comes to a close and the camera focuses on each contestant one by one, a threatening silence seems to brew from one judge in particular.
“i think i’ll start,” ran seems to recognize the storm brewing sooner than yuna, picking up her microphone before jihun can speak. “hyunki, our center,” she smiles, “you do shine on stage these days. i think after a rough start to the competition, you truly came to life and continue to shine. you show your expressions well.”
“agreed,” yuna jumps in, and expands upon the thought. “you’ve definitely become a more balanced performer from when we first saw you. i can’t say for certain that it’s enough to keep first place, but you’re certainly making a good case for it. great job.”
jihun has nothing to say just yet, simply nodding his agreement with the other coaches for now.
ran, feeling more uncomfortable as her fellow ceo continues to brew in his emotions calls on the next contestant. “you’re also showing steady improvement, jordan,” ran compliments him. “i noticed you’re also paying closer attention to your expressions this time. it’s improvement like that that we’re excited to see and makes us want to continue to watch your growth. please keep up the good work.”
“if nothing else, i think pink venom was the perfect song to help this whole team practice their stage presence,” yuna remarks. “it’s not terrible challenging vocally and leaves a lot of room for attitude. you gave us a good performance this time, jordan, and i hope to see this sort of consistency from you moving forward.”
again, jihun remains silent.
“i think siwoo embodied the concept best, though,” yuna continues uncomfortably, “and we can tell that you were working hard for this performance, maybe harder than you’ve worked before?” she suggests, her smile turning a bit coy.
“please don’t take this the wrong way, but you play the ‘rich girl’ character very well,” ran praises the young man herself. “the attitude is perfect for most of quartz’s discography. this was definitely your song.”
the judges look at jihun, almost afraid to comment on the group as a whole until he says something. but it seems that group feedback isn’t coming the same way it had for the other teams. “bring team a back out,” he instructs jian and the staff. “i think everyone needs to hear this.”
as the other team shuffles uncomfortably back on stage, jihun stands up at the desk, fingertips just resting on the tabletop. the slightest tremor in his hands betrays his fury before his lips open.
“renyi, dohyun,” he addresses the coaches, “i understand that your role was limited in this competition and you were at the mercy of the teams we gave you. but i’ve never been more humiliated by a studio delta team in my life.”
the ceo shoots a sharp glare across each and every contestant, making sure everyone knows that no one is spared from his disappointment and fury.
“this challenge was made for us. it was assigned by me. and yet i sit here and listen to both teams do very little to make this song their own. at least team a rearranged it a bit, it was a mess of a performance and showed very little creativity but at least it was different. showing up in different costumes is not a show of creativity. it’s a complete lack of it. i would have thought that the studio delta teams would have blown everyone out of the water, and yet i’m sitting here and a lime entertainment team is the most unique rendition we’ve seen so far. aren’t you a little bit embarrassed?”
he lets his words linger in the air for a moment, the entire studio silent as he breaks protocol and simply decides what happens next on his own. jihun sits back into his seat heavily, still clearly angry as he scribbles something on the paper in front of him. “we don’t need time to discuss this. i’m sure yuna and ran already agree. the winner of this battle is TEAM A, but only because we can’t have two losers. get off the stage. team b, stick around a moment so we can decide which of you we’re sending home.”
the judges enter discussion about who from the losing team should be removed, but again it’s kept hidden until later in the episode. it’s just as well, since even the audience may want to cut away from this tense scene as soon as possible.
the audience doesn’t see the short break that’s taken for jihun to cool down and the rest of the staff and judges to get themselves ready for the final performances. they cut immediately to jian’s smiling face as she’s flanked by DON’T CALL ME TEAM A and TEAM B.
“our final battle of episode three will be giving us their unique spin on a.maze’s don’t call me,” she proclaims, her smile as unshakable as ever. “i’ll admit, i snuck into their stage rehearsals and caught a glimpse of what they have to show. i’m glad these are the final performances, since this is truly the big finale,” she winks at the camera, and then gestures to the two teams around her. “any last words before we begin?”
after the teams great, goad, or congratulate their competition, jian waves team b off of the stage. “as always, we’re starting with TEAM A!” she announces. for a moment, the team is seen taking their places on stage, but the long practice sessions that lead them here always comes first.
"may i ask you a question?" RYU INHO takes a short break with the coach for his group, YEOM SARANG, in the middle of yet another grueling practice session. sarang offers a warm smile and inho takes that as a sign to ask away. "do you feel like you have to think a lot about your image and how you present yourself to others? or do you think it comes natural?"
sarang is quiet for a moment, thinking before he responds. "as performers, we're shapeshifters,” he begins to explain, “we have to be able to pull off so many different concepts, we have to embody various outfits and styles... we have to show the best sides of ourselves all of the time, and i do think that takes effort and mindfulness." the young man shrugs, perhaps dismissive, perhaps unsure of his own response. “it's a balancing act, really.”
"the judges mentioned to keep my image in mind and be careful of how i act,” inho admits, clearly taking their feedback to heart.
"we all want to present ourselves in the best light possible,” sarang continues to explain, perhaps shedding some light on what the judges truly meant. “and we don't want to let those who adore us down either. so long as your intentions are good, no one can really fault you."
"we all got along extremely well and had good chemistry from the start,” inho explains to the cameras in the interview room, “it allowed for us to come up with some cool concepts for the performance, and help each other be the best we could be."
the same room is suddenly occupied by HWANG JINGREN, also gushing about his camaraderie with his fellow teammates. “everyone in the team was so helpful,” he explains. “jaeyoung was particularly good with keeping a smile on my face, even after hours of practice.”
“you again! my lucky day,” jingren exclaims, poking SONG JAEYOUNG in the arm with his ecstatic greeting.
“your lucky day? you better share that luck of yours then. god knows we need it,” jaeyoung jokes back immediately, initiating more contact by linking their arms together.
“need it? we can do this without luck,” jingren insists. the chemistry within the group clearly is strong right off the bat as the pair settles down to start brainstorming ideas for their rendition of don’t call me.
“after doing our line distributions, i wanted to honor the parts i was given,” jingren appears in the interview room again after a moment. “i did not want to drag my group down in any way. my biggest challenge was keeping my voice steady during the parts with heavy dance…”
“hey!” sarang’s voice cuts the scene again, he and jingren in a practice room together. “you look like you’re thinking a little too hard about something. i can tell you already that, if you’re having any doubts about the performance or your vocals, there’s no point. you’re, like, so talented.”
“o-oh, now you’re giving me too much credit,” jingren tries to dismiss the compliment, “you’re really good at performing. i think there’s a lot that you could help me with.”
sarang, ever the hype man, doesn’t take the dismissal easily. “i mean it when i say that you’re incredible. i realize you’re maybe trying to be modest, and i love that about you, but sometimes, it’s okay to feel good about your skills, too; to celebrate them, in a way.” he hypes up his teammate, helping him build the confidence he needs to stand on stage.
the two continue to practice, but there are other members in the team who have yet to be seen. namely, PARK AHYOUNG. she finally makes an appearance with ryu inho, the two practicing the choreography together.
“yeah i’m not much of a dancer…but my little sister might bully me if i mess this up so that isn’t an option,” inho jokes, but is he really joking?
“yeah, i don’t have any professional dance training at all,” ahyoung sympathizes with her teammate. but that’s not going to stop her. “so, i was looking up exercises to help increase stamina and jumping jacks are supposed to be good. i’m really good at jumping jacks. wanna see if you can do more jumping jacks than me?”
ahyoung insists on going first, a sped-up version of her jumping jack set played on screen. “okay, that was 50,” she says as the fast-forward replay comes to an end, suspiciously short. “i’m just kidding, it was 17,” she admits, out of breath after only a few short minutes of exercising.
this team acts more like a family than a group of strangers, apparently bonding with each other incredibly quickly.
“they’re all creative people, we mesh well. thank god,” jaeyoung tells the cameras again how wonderful this team has been together, “it’d be hard to be in a team with people you just don’t… click with, you know? but we did.”
“and we came up with an ambitious concept for our performance.”
“can you explain your concept?” a voice from behind the camera asks him.
“retro vibes, think saloons but also cyberpunk. like mad max, if you know the movie,” jaeyoung tries to explain. “i think our storyline is sick too, honestly. a bittersweet fight, just like the song almost.”
the scene fades into the group standing on stage, ready to begin their performance. the music begins, unfamiliar to those who have heart a.maze’s original rendition of the song. the remix that team a is using is harsher, grungier, and with the combination of their stage outfits the mad max vibes come across clearly.
it’s hard not to notice the chemistry between the team members themselves. they don’t shy away from one another, making eye contact amongst each other and playing off of their energy and emotions. if this was purely a concept battle, they would have won for certain, as expected of a team represented by an sr media delegate.
the song comes to a close and a short round of applause is heard from the judges and jian, who stands in the wings while the groups are performing.
“we do have to give our feedback, though,” ran smiles, “but i think we all agree you all put on a wonderful performance. but, i have to point out, jingren,” her smile becomes a bit strained, “you didn’t look like you were having fun with that performance. is everything alright?” the scene flashes back of a clear frown on jingren’s face that was caught not just by ran, but by the cameras as well. “please don’t forget to mind your expressions on stage. even if you make a mistake, you can sometimes cover it up with confidence alone.”
“but you did make a mistake,” yuna points out. “your voice wasn’t terribly stable, unfortunately. and ran is right, if you had acted more confident i may not have noticed, or might have been able to let it slide. but by scowling like that, you admit to your audience that you’re not happy with your own performance. how can you expect the audience to be happy with it then too?”
“you’re improving, but you still need to work on your stamina,” jihun’s frown somewhat mirrors the one that jingren had been wearing on stage, funnily enough. his critique is short but maybe that’s a good thing.
“ahyoung,” jihun seems ready to call her out immediately again, “it seems like you can take things a bit more seriously when there's other people's dreams on the line.” he fixes the young woman with a stern look, though perhaps it’s an admission that she did improve at least the slightest bit. “at least you didn’t completely let your team down.”
“admittedly, i feel like this concept didn’t suit you as well as it suited the others,” ran smiles sympathetically. sometimes it’s not the participants’ fault; there’s always going to be someone who falls somewhat behind in any category. “your performance has improved, but perhaps you lacked the maturity to properly convey the emotions in this song. i appreciate your efforts regardless.”
yuna also smiles this time. “your rap is getting better,” she praises her, “but this isn’t exactly a song by a group well-known for their rapping. you could still work on your stability and stamina more. you sounded a little out of breath… aren’t you one of the youngest contestants here? you should be full of energy.” yuna teases gently.
“i could tell you felt better about this performance, inho,” ran smiles endearingly. “i loved the expressions you were showing us, very snarky and confident. it matched the concept well, i think this suited you fine.”
“you danced and sang well, but more importantly you seemed to have confidence in yourself,” yuna praises him as well. “you’ve been a joy to watch improve so far. if anything, i’d say that you want to try to keep this same energy regardless of your personal feelings about the song. i’ll be the first to admit that i didn’t love every song in my own discography, but i had to perform with a smile anyway. i hope you’re able to keep this in mind for future performances you may not enjoy as much as this one.”
“all we can ask is that you listen to our feedback and apply it to your practice and performance,” jihun speaks. “you’ve done that.” it’s close enough to a compliment from him.
“jaeyoung, you’ve also taken our criticism to heart,” jihun gives a similar appraisal of the final contestant on this team. “teamwork is also a skill. it’s good to see you finally learn some of that.”
“were you on fire?” ran grins, “i feel like we could feel the heat radiating off of you. the expressions! in this case, your intensity was perfect for the concept you chose for this song. the chemistry of this team really shines, actually. you all made each other better by working together.”
yuna smiles as well. “i think i’m a little jealous,” she remarks, “i’ve never had a team to perform with, but your group made it look like so much fun. i should talk to my ceo, maybe it’s not too late to build a new team…” she laughs, clearly not serious about the idea, though the compliment is genuine.
“i do think you could have pushed the boundaries a bit farther,” jihun frowns ever so slightly, though that seems to be his default expression. “this was more or less just a remix with a new concept thrown on top, it didn’t completely reinvent a.maze’s song. but based on what else we’ve seen today, it was certainly better than others.” he doesn’t seem to be over the disappointment that was the studio delta teams just yet.
“well i enjoyed it,” ran asserts, though of course she would appreciate the more theatrical approach. “as yuna said, your chemistry really sold the show. i think you had the best synergy of any group we’ve seen perform today. but i’ll admit, i did think of a.maze the entire time. maybe it’s because they’re my group, but i couldn’t help but be reminded of their own close teamwork. you embodied the song well, but i have to admit you didn’t completely reinvent it.”
“regardless, great job,” ran concludes, giving the team another round of applause as they leave the stage, only to be replaced by TEAM B.
the scene shifts, as it had several times before, to the practice rooms. this time, the cameras waste no time in capturing the moments when team b is planning their performance, from concept to choreography.
“putting a performance together took a lot more effort than it seems on the surface,” it’s RYEO JIHYUN who is the first to appear in the interview room for this group. “so i’m grateful that we were all supportive of one another, things processed quite smoothly too.”
the scene shifts slightly, now only PARK STEVEN and CHOI HANGYEOL monopolizing the practice room. steven mimics a flowing dance movement that hangyeol demonstrates first, and then adds on to it. “okay,” he muses aloud, “i think after that, it’d look nice with like- a twisty? turkey kinda thing…” he demonstrates with his body what his lips can’t seem to describe.
“oh!” hangyeol recognizes the movement immediately, “it’s called an illusion- where did you learn to do that out of nowhere?”
“i’ve been researching,” stevie explains, seemingly embarrassed by his own admission, “i was watching some videos this week to kinda help give me an idea of what i’m doing.”
the duo keep choreographing together, hangyeol making the next suggestion. “it might be nice as a quick roll-off too. ooh- what if we did something a little spicy coming out of it? maybe one of those reverse scorpions, since we’re already so close to the floor? here-” he demonstrates the movement. stevie approves.
jihyun’s voice plays over a few more moments of practice before the scene shifts to him sitting in the interview room again. “it’s a song that tells a story about the singer who gets betrayed by their loved one who’s trying to move on from their toxic ex that’s still obsessed with them. we added a contemporary twist to it, so the way we sang and dance is a little softer than the original, we wanted to convey the bitter emotions felt in a song,” as luciel explains, the graceful yet tortured movements of the dancers hard at work seem to make much more sense. “we’re puppets controlled by the puppet master, that’s why there’s strings that gets cut off eventually, to show that we can get out of that toxicity.”
JIHYUN is seen in the practice rooms next, he and LEE NAYOUNG replacing the two young men from the previous scene. the coach has only just walked into the room, jihyun’s singing suddenly paused by the entrance of another person.
“is everything okay?” nayoung asks her teammate.
“it’s been alright so far but… i’m struggling to feel the mood of the song even though on paper, i understand the concept.” jihyun doesn’t look quite defeated, but he’s certainly perturbed by his struggles with the song.
“when in doubt, fake it,” nayoung advises, “even if you’re never experienced a toxic relationship, you can think about how it would feel, and try to reflect that in how you perform. i think if you tap into some kind of desperation, and frustration, you’ll embody the concept and it’ll come across well.”
it seems that nayoung’s advice to get used to acting filters throughout the group, jihyun now partnering with steven to work on their performance. “could you try singing while making eye contact with me?” jihyun suggests to the other man, holding a hand out as an offering gesture. steven takes it, and jihyun starts quoting the lyrics softly, speaking them instead of singing, “tell me that if i love you, i have to let you go.”
steven matches jihyun’s gaze, but only for a moment before his face turns bright red and he’s pulling away to cover his embarrassment with his hands. “wait, i’m shy,” he sputters. obviously, jihyun has learned well from nayoung if he’s able to fluster his male teammate so easily!
while the team gets along well, there’s clearly a business-like focus shared between them. compared to team a in particular, the chemistry of team b is strong in the sense of a well-organized group project rather than the family-like feeling of their competitors. just how will that play out on stage?
there’s not much longer to wait!
however, before getting to the actual performance, one more scene pops onto the screen. it’s dress rehearsal just earlier that day and the entire team is running through the unique dance break, the full choreography yet to be revealed. during a scorpion move, HANGYEOL suddenly shouts in pain.
“i’m okay,” he insists, though the music stops immediately and staff immediately flock towards him to see what’s the matter. “it’s just an old injury. i have a brace for it backstage. nobody panic.”
how could they not panic, though?
nayoung approaches him, his wrist a scary-looking combination of tape and the brace, likely much worse than it looks, even if it is quite bad despite hangyeol insisting, again, “i’m fine.”
“you’re not fine,” nayoung disagrees, “we need to-”
“-change the choreo. i know.” hangyeol is fully aware of the hiccup that is his last-minute injury. he tests the limits of his wrist, thinking about just how they’re going to pull this off. “i’ll adjust to something that makes sense, so they don’t have to change anything.” he assures nayoung.
whether she’s convinced or not, there’s no time to do anything but simply trust him. “ok. i’ll let them know.”
a few worried conversations later and the entire team lines up on stage, hangyeol’s wrist still fully wrapped. will he push through the pain and injure himself more? will he really come up with something on the fly that still suits the choreography without distracting the others?
that lingering question haunts the entire performance, adding another layer to their haunted, contemporary retelling of don’t call me. as the dance break comes closer and closer and no sign of hangyeol suddenly cured of his ailment, just what will happen?
perhaps the best made plans cannot substitute for happy accidents. while the other young men lean forward into the scorpion pose, hangyeol pirouettes in place instead, spinning once, twice, three times while the others dance with un-injured wrists. at the climax, hangyeol grabs at his neck and falls to his knees, ripping his necklace off like the final chain broken between him and the toxic relationship still trying to sink its claws into him. he stares directly into the camera, directly at the viewer behind the screen, and drops the choker off the edge of the stage as if taunting the viewer with his newfound freedom.
a cheer goes up from the female judges as the team finishes their performance, the cameras catching each in their ending fairy poses before finally leaving time for the judges’ critiques.
“i’m glad this performance was last!” yuna exclaims, “it definitely felt like the grand finale of this episode! congratulations to all of you for successfully pulling it off.” she pauses to clap a few more times, giving the team their well-deserved applause.
“ah, but hangyeol,” yuna’s brow knits together in concern, “how’s your wrist? we heard what happened during rehearsal, are you alright?” she waits for his response, her frown sympathetic. “injuries happen. but being able to work through them, or despite them, makes you a stronger performer. i’m thoroughly impressed with your ability to think quickly and to make sure your team didn’t suffer for the accident. if we didn’t know better, your adjustments to the choreography really looked intentional.”
“and your expressions!” ran exclaims, also taken with the performance and perhaps with hangyeol himself in particular. “the whole team did well, but i felt like you connected with the song in particular. something in your face moved my heart… i think if jihun wasn’t such a grump, he would admit it moved his too.” she smiles and elbows the judge next to her.
jihun rolls his eyes, though he doesn’t look nearly as annoyed as he has before. “we normally scold contestants for injuring themselves,” he remarks, “and for this reason entirely. you can’t perform your best if you’re not feeling your best, and we don’t want to make an investment in someone who doesn’t know their limits and will tear themselves apart before they can even make it to debut. you are the exception in this case. you’re wise enough to know when to back off and how to make a performance work despite injury. your previous experience on stage must have done you well.”
“jihyun’s expressions were also surprisingly good, for someone who was faking it,” jihun quirks a brow as he looks on to the next contestant. “it’s good to see you take nayoung’s advice and apply it to your practice and performance. it shows good character and an ability to learn. i would just suggest that you remember to put that emotion into your voice as well as your face. you’re a good singer, but this song isn’t about good singers.”
“i do think it’s important to show off your abilities, though,” yuna disagrees gently, or perhaps just refines the critique that jihun has already given. “you have a good voice, jihyun. it’s pleasant to listen to… but you’re allowed to make us feel unpleasant at times if the song calls for it. but at this stage in your career, i understand why you didn’t. it’s a fine detail thing that will come with time.” she smiles encouragingly.
“you made this one particular expression during the performance that was especially good,” ran remarks, trying to mimic it on her own face. the screen replays jihyun’s conceited smirk as he bitterly sings about how awful his ex was. “i don’t know if many people would have thought to smile there, maybe they would have cried instead. it was a really captivating choice. maybe you have a future in acting as well,” her smile seems to be filled with unspoken plans and ideas.
“and steven,” jihun is the first to give the young man a stern look. though, perhaps he only does it now because he finds it entertaining that the contestant is a little bit afraid of him. “you’ve grown a lot since last season. i know we keep saying it, but it showed in this mission in particular. using your own free time to research for your performance was a very smart and mature move and you helped your team a lot by staying focused on the concept and goal.”
“if i recall, this was the episode you were eliminated on last season, correct?” yuna brings up the past, her smile a bit sly as she once again drudges up memories steven probably would rather leave behind him. “i don’t think we’ve had to scold you once so far, have we? at least not so badly that i remember it. you’re a strong dancer and it’s refreshing to see you take the craft more seriously. you could work on your vocals more, but a.maze are notoriously difficult to keep up with. you did well for your first attempt at covering this song.”
finally, it’s ran’s turn. “stevie park, you keep making us eat our words from last season and i couldn’t be happier about it,” she smiles warmly. “i think what stands out most this time is how you’re able to bring brightness and joy to your team without distracting them this time. it can be difficult to keep morale up during long days of practice but staying motivated while remaining focused goes a long way in delivering a strong performance. keep it up.”
“as for your performance overall, i think yuna said it best when she said this was the perfect grand finale of the episode,” ran continues. “you not only changed the song right down to its very tempo, choreographed your own dance in a place that made sense, and introduced a concept that enhanced the lyrics, you did it all while singing and dancing at a near professional level. i’m genuinely impressed,” she claps her hands together, a short applause to cheer on the team that had given them such a great performance.
“i thought it couldn’t get much better than team a,” yuna admits, “but you gave us everything they did and more. ah, i wish we could keep this team together for the next round. you worked well together, very professionally, and it served you well in delivering a phenomenal performance. you tugged on all of our heartstrings. great job.”
jihun sighs, folds his arms, and leans back in his seat. “why did you have to be a sr media team?” he groans. “ran isn’t going to let me hear the end of this. i don’t even have much to critique. you used your coach’s expertise strategically, so congrats to nayoung for leading your team so well. i hate to say it. you made the song your own, which was exactly what we asked you to do.”
he also gives a begrudging round of applause with his fellow judges as team a rejoins jian and team b on stage.
“after deliberation, our judges have revealed the winner of this battle,” jian reads from her cue card, glancing at the judges with a smile before looking down at the winner’s name again, eyes wide. “the winner of don’t call me is… TEAM B!”
after a moment of cheering and celebrating, jihun picks up his microphone again. “you both did well,” he explains, “but someone had to be the loser. team b better embodied the challenge and made the song more uniquely their own, beyond just remixing the track and wearing different costumes. at last, we can only have one winner.”
“unfortunately,” jian announces, “it’s time to say goodbye to some of our teammates and friends. if the losing teams could all join me on stage,” she gestured to the wings where the losing teams from cake and pink venom join her on stage as don’t call me team b exits for now.
“KAITO, JAEYOUNG, and SIWOO.. please step forward,” jian announces. “according to our judges you are… safe!” she smiles as the contestants all breathe a sigh of relief, the prank surely making their heartbeats increase a few notches.
“the next three names will be the eliminated contestants for this episode,” jian confirms, no pranks left before the announcement. “from CAKE TEAM A… we’re saying goodbye to YOON EUNWOL.”
a somber feeling fills the room as the contestants say their goodbyes to the eliminated participant. before he can leave the stage, however, yuna speaks up one last time. “eunwol, you have talent, but you lack the maturity to show it properly. while we’re eliminating you today, we’re doing so in hopes of teaching you a lesson and that this will only help you in your performing career. you need to be able to stand strong on your own and push forward without complaint. please believe me when i say that we hope to see you again soon.”
after another moment of farewell greetings, eunwol is escorted off the stage.
“next, from PINK VENOM TEAM B… MOON JORDAN.”
more tears, hugs, and goodbyes are shared as jordan processes his elimination from the competition. perhaps this one was more of a shock.
“jordan,” jihun addresses him this time, “unfortunately, someone from your team had to go. it wasn’t an easy decision as we felt that you all performed fairly evenly, but unfortunately you drew the short straw in this specific circumstance. i hope this doesn’t discourage you too much and you’re able to continue to pursue your performing dreams outside of this show.”
like eunwol, jordan is also given his final hugs and handshakes before he’s escorted away.
“our final elimination tonight is from DON’T CALL ME TEAM A,” jian announces. she sighs as she reads the name silently before finally revealing it aloud. “tonight we’re sorry to say good bye to… PARK AHYOUNG.”
the team that had formed such a close bond so quickly undoubtedly sheds more than a few tears as they say good bye to their eliminated member.
“your heart was never in this, was it, ahyoung?” ran smiles sympathetically from her place behind the judges’ table. “but you still delivered us a good performance. we were glad to see what you had to offer, but i hope you’re happier pursuing music, or whatever else you’d like to do, outside of next gen. maybe our paths will cross again someday.”
as the final contestant is ushered away, the survivors and winners are gathered on stage. one by one, the updated ranking is introduced to them, time given to react while the scores pop up one at a time.
most notably, CHOI HANGYEOL has reclaimed his seat at the top, achieving the number one position for the second time this season. “congratulations!” jian praises him. “i don’t recall anyone earning the honor more than once last year. it’s a huge testament to your achievement!”
“next week will be another elimination round,” jian reminds the contestants in the bottom ranks, most notably SEIRA, JUEUN, and JIHYUN. “you still have time to raise your ranking to remain safe after the next evaluation.”
“speaking of, forget your old teams, because you’re all being rearranged into three new teams,” jian lets the contestants know. “our next mission is the CONCEPT EVALUATION!”
“our judges have been watching you over the last few weeks and have placed you into the concepts that they feel you’ll perform best. of the many diverse concepts that have appeared in kpop, and even just in sr media groups, we’ve divided it up into three main categories: cute and bright, elegant and sexy, and teen crush.”
“in the next episode, you’ll be performing the concepts in the songs chosen for you by the judges to the best of your ability. the winning team will be safe from elimination while the losing two teams risk members being sent home at the end of the episode.”
“your new teams and songs are on the screen above. take a moment to greet your new groupmates and get ready! we’re excited to see what you’ll show us on the next episode of next gen!”
instead of do better, a 15-second clip of each of the songs the groups will cover next episode are played instead with the original music video played on screen. however, once those clips are completed, the next gen theme plays and the usual end card appears on screen.
a quick recap of the previous episode opens up this week’s show, reminding the audience of the twenty-odd idol hopefuls who have joined this year’s competition. it’s certainly a colorful bunch this time around with a few familiar faces peppered in among the crowd; do better plays in the background as the screen focuses on STEVEN and the winners of last season, now coaches for the new contestants, before bursting into the title screen and logo.
the scene shifts abruptly to the three judges, ceos YOON JIHUN and SEO RAN of studio delta and sr media respectively and YUNA, the face of lime entertainment. the trio sit at a shared table draped in a thick black cloth, elevated just slightly to give them a good view of a stage specially set up for this week’s evaluation, decorated in purple, teal, and pink like the show’s logo.
“who are you most looking forward to seeing?” yuna asks her fellow evaluators, hands clasped as she leans forward to glance over at both ran and jihun.
“personally, i can’t wait to see more of HANGYEOL,” ran admits. a short clip of the contestant’s audition from last week and his subsequent first-place rank at the end of the episode plays across the screen. “he’s a talented young man and i have a feeling he’ll do well with this challenge.”
“actually, i think i’m looking forward to STEVEN,” jihun considers his words for a moment before continuing, “he’s already familiar with this type of mission, even though it’s a different song and dance from last year. i’m hopeful that he’ll show us a new side of himself this season.”
“since i asked, i should answer as well,” yuna smiles, “while i agree with both of you, i’m personally looking forward to seeing AHYOUNG’s performance. she has a strong personality and a lot of energy, so it’ll be interesting to see how that fits into the group.”
it’s no wonder that the judges are looking forward to the top three from last episode. they chatter for a few moments more before the talented emcee RHEE JIAN takes her position in center stage, ready to announce the first contestant.
ASAKURA TOUMA is the first contestant up, taking the stage shortly after a brief introduction from jian. the camera focuses in on his silhouette, silent except for the exaggerated sound of his breathing, as he waits for the music to start. just as it looks like the performance is about to begin, the scene abruptly changes to the very same contestant in the practice rooms provided for the NEXT GEN participants.
it seems that touma is quite the practice-bug, staying late hours in the practice rooms with KAITO and separately with HYUNKI, and stretching with JIHYUN. “i understand that i was doing more than i can chew, back then.” touma’s voice plays across a scene of him helping jihyun lean further into his stretch. “i’d like to think that i was able to balance things a bit more clean this time, focus on what i can do first.”
the scene fades back to the judges, their sharp eyes digging into the contestant even as the song has yet to start. “this will be… interesting,” jihun remarks. the two women remain quiet.
do better starts playing and the very first performance begins. touma is clearly enjoying the stage and while he starts strong with the rapping and his dancing isn’t bad, it’s singing where his performance begins to fall apart. the edit seems to highlight this, featuring every shaky note or slightly missed beat and making the boy’s performance out to be much worse than it may have been without the repeated cuts, replays of imperfect moments, or quick zooms into the slightest shake or wobble.
even touma admits that he struggled; “it’s different from training,” he tells the camera, the scene suddenly cutting to the young man seated in a simple room. “i had to keep in mind the pitch and everything. i had to keep it stable while dancing too, somehow it’s easier with rapping.”
the performance comes to a close with an uncomfortable silence hanging in the air as the judges seem to collect their thoughts.
“i suppose i’ll start,” ran picks up her microphone and begins to address the contestant directly. “touma, i can tell that you took our advice to heart from last episode. we appreciate a trainee who’s coachable and applies feedback to their efforts, however…”
while ran seems at a loss for words, perhaps looking for a softer way to say what’s on her mind, jihun has no such delicacy. he takes over immediately: “just because we thought you were doing too much last time doesn’t mean you should have neglected your vocal training now.” he sighs, perhaps regretting that they were not more clear with their expectations, or that the contestants understood the assignment so poorly.
“it’s a good thing that you can rap and dance,” yuna takes a more balanced approach to her critique, the carrot and stick method in a sense. “but for your sake, you should focus on learning to sing better. no matter how good of a dancer or rapper you are, the public will always perceive you as untalented if you can’t sing.” she speaks from a place of experience, her advice genuine.
there’s one last scene of touma in the interview room. “i’m happy i did it. i’m confident that i did my best, and i’m sure all my hard work will shine through somehow.” his optimism despite the rough critique is admirable. perhaps he’ll become a contestant to watch closely as the competition goes on.
“ah, well,” jihun sighs, “hopefully the next will be better.”
perhaps disappointed that the first performance was not a show-stopper, the judges moods brighten anyway as jian announces that CHOI HANGYEOL will be the next contestant on stage.
“mr. first-place,” yuna smiles warmly as the young man takes his place on stage. he bows politely and greets each of the judges.
“i’m sorry,” hangyeol announces, “i’m a little starstruck at the moment. thank you for this opportunity, and for your kind words of support from before. i’ll do my best to make sure you won’t regret them.”
“he speaks well,” jihun remarks, low enough that the contestant on stage can’t hear her just yet.
“he was working with my NAYOUNG this week,” ran informs the other judges, the scene shifting for a moment to show hangyeol and the trainee-coach in a practice room.
“how does it feel to have them say they want to sign you on day one? i'm pretty sure they didn't say that about anyone last season," nayoung asks her question of her student for the day, her competitive spirit obviously not at all dampened since her last appearance on television.
humble as always, hangyeol’s response is as perfect as if written in a storybook: “it’s an honor, but one that i still feel like i need to earn.”
the scene shifts again, this time to just backstage as the young man stretches in preparation for his performance for the judges. a paper armband displaying his number one position wraps snugly around his upper arm, lest anyone forgets who wears the crown this week. suddenly, his arm flops down. “tsk…it’s heavy isn’t it? nobody tells you that part.” his tone is light, as if joking, but the viewer can read into the meaning behind it. first place is a heavy burden for a contestant to bear. will he live up to last week’s performance that earned him the title?
hangyeol once again seems to be a professional on stage. his mistakes are overlooked by the camera and the editors, zooming into his flawless expressions and sharp-yet-fluid movements which suit the heavy beat of the song well. it’s like it’s his personal music show… the captions praise him, the cuts suddenly looking very reminiscent of an idol performance as it cuts between different angles of the same performance. he’s stable, if a bit imperfect, but it’s clear that the powers that be behind the scenes are much more forgiving of their first number-one than they had been of the previous contestant.
all three judges clap their approval in a tiny applause as hangyeol finishes his performance.
“i’ll be honest,” jihun doesn’t smile, but he doesn’t look displeased either, “i didn’t expect you to be able to sing. you were surprisingly stable for someone who hasn’t done this before… have you?” he suddenly questions; it’s not out of the question that there may be small idols that disbanded or retired without the general public’s notice.
“there were mistakes, but you never let them slow you down,” yuna nods her appreciation of the performance. “that’s hard to do, even for seasoned performers. it’s easy to get caught up on a mistake and make more because of it. your resilience makes you a stronger performer.”
“if i had one bit of advice to give, it would be to practice your enunciation more,” ran suggests, not unkindly. “your details with dancing are top notch, so i’d love to see the same attention given to your voice, whether you decide to pursue rapping or singing going forward.”
“if i can get yoon jihun himself to smile, i’ll consider it an accomplishment,” hangyeol’s voice is heard momentarily as he leaves the stage. for a moment, it seems as if his mission has failed. but after he’s gone, the tiniest upward curve is revealed on jihun’s lips.
“this is the part where i have to give you some not-so-good news,” jian announces to the judges, who frown as they listen to the emcee. “HAN YURA and MOON SOOYOUNG have both withdrawn from the competition for personal reasons. we wish the both of them the best of luck in their future endeavors and hope to see them on stage again soon.”
while the expressions of the judges don’t brighten they do give the two withdrawn contestants a round of applause to send them off of the show.
“with that, we’ll move on to our next contestant,” jian announces, “please welcome HAN JUEUN to the stage!”
the young woman walks out with a confidence rather uncommon among the contestants, which the judges pick up on immediately.
“she hardly looks nervous at all,” ran remarks.
“she doesn’t look nervous at all,” jihun corrects his fellow judge as all three stare down at the girl on stage.
“i’m pretty confident,” jueun herself confirms her aptitude for the stage, smiling at the cameras as she sits in the interview room. “with how hard i’ve been working, i don’t think i’m going to slip tremendously with this next ranking, at least.”
and she has been working hard; the scene cuts to the practice rooms, a montage of her sessions with various fellow contestants displayed. in each clip, she’s seen practicing a different skill, seeking advice from more experienced participants, and even giving advice of her own.
the scene settles on a moment shared between jueun and JIAYI, the two women talking together during a short break. “this whole thing is being televised,” jiayi reminds the other, followed by a confession, “i'm worried about that too, but i try to ignore all the cameras.”
“they’re kind of hard to ignore though, aren’t they? i mean, they are literally everywhere,” jueun laughs, perhaps betraying the slightest sense of nervousness with the sound. “but i’m trying my best as well.”
back to the present, to the woman standing confidently before the judges, and the music begins playing yet again.
jihun notices something, though.
“she’s staring at me a lot, isn’t she?” he remarks. the women to his left and right have to stifle their laughter.
the performance wraps up and yuna is the first to speak this time. “you’re comfortable on stage, aren’t you? your expressions are good, and you didn’t look even a little bit nervous. do you have any acting experience?” she questions appreciatively, curious more than anything.
“like yuna said, it’s clear that you have experience on stage. i just can’t help but wonder why you seemed to only perform for ceo yoon?” ran’s tone is light enough, though her words more biting than typical of the soft spoken ceo. perhaps this is a sensitive spot for her. “yuna and i are also here, and also judges. picking one place to look is good for ballerinas who need to keep their balance while spinning, but performing to one person alone in the audience can make the rest feel a bit uncomfortable.”
“it’s clear that you practiced hard and put a lot of effort into this performance,” jihun shuffles the papers in front of him as he speaks. “your expressions are good and make for an engaging performance, but your skills could use a little more work. keep practicing, you’re doing well.” small words are a large compliment from the pickiest judge.
jueun is seen in the interview room one last time as her portion comes to an end. “i would love to see how much i grow skill-wise. i came onto this show like a blank canvas, and it’d be nice to see how colorful i become at the end!”
“HAN YUWOL,” jihun realizes who the next contestant is, echoing jian as she announces the next name. “he’s one of the odd ones, isn’t he?”
“this should be interesting,” ran agrees, though she appears to be more looking forward to this than jihun is.
the scene cuts abruptly to yuwol in the practice room, coach SEOJUN talking him through his session and addressing the contestant’s weaknesses as he approaches this challenge.
“i’ve never actually done any dancing before, much less performing dance,” yuwol admits. no dancing at all? certainly he has a daunting task ahead of him.
“i can help with that,” seojun assures his student, “i’ll do my best to having you knowing the whole routine in no time.”
the scene changes in such a way that it’s hard to notice that it’s a different time, a different person in yuwol’s company. it’s AHYOUNG now, abruptly pausing the music during their dance practice session. “enough!” ahyoung shouts, seemingly frustrated with the lack of progress either from herself or her companion. “i’m putting a random song on and dancing to that,” she proclaims. the camera focuses on yuwol’s face, taking in his reaction.
“like we’re supposed to… freestyle it?” yuwol asks, as if it’s an entirely foreign concept to him. and, based on his discussion with seojun, maybe it really is.
how is he going to pull himself together for the judges? the captions drag out the tension, setting the contestant up for a disappointing performance if some miracle isn’t pulled off. the scene shows a few more seconds of awkward, stiff dance movements before fading to black. yuwol reappears on stage in front of the judges not a moment later. the young man takes a deep breath– is he also afraid of the results of his practice?
the poor thing. the cameras pan to the judges’ pained expressions as yuwol opens with an awkward rap, only made better by how the dance is somehow even worse. if ran and yuna try to mask their expressions, or at least soften them slightly, jihun does nothing of the sort. he frowns openly, disappointed with the performance before them.
an uncomfortable silence hangs in the air as the music concludes, the judges seemingly at a loss for words for a moment.
“yuwol,” jihun finally breaks the silence, “i think you know what we’re going to say. that just… wasn’t good. we thought you were a good singer in your audition, but we didn’t see any of that talent tonight. frankly, you have a lot of work to put in if you’re going to make it in this competition.”
“learning to dance is hard,” yuna tries to smooth over the harsh words of her fellow judge, giving the poor young man the benefit of the doubt. “it’s not something that can be done in a few days. i think you did your best to learn as much as you can in a short time. i can congratulate you on that.” somehow, even as she tries to find something nice to say, it falls flat.
“there’s nowhere to go but up from here, yuwol,” ran smiles, the kindest of the three despite the pity in her eyes.
the interview room makes another appearance, yuwol now seated in the center of it. “i looked… rather stiff, i’d be the first to admit that,” he confesses to the camera, “i’m new to all this, though that’s not an excuse… of course, it’s far from a perfect performance… there’s a lot to learn from it.”
“next,” jian’s lovely, smiling face takes over the screen after a brief pause in the wake of yuwol’s poor performance, “we’d like to welcome HWANG JINGREN to the stage!”
there’s not much preamble to jingren’s entrance to the stage. there’s only a short clip of him in the practice room, chatting with JAEYOUNG. “i don’t know if i’m any good. especially, considering how i ranked near the bottom,” jingren confesses, “i don’t have the natural beat at all.”
“everyone loves an underdog story,” jaeyoung offers encouragingly, “someone rising from the very bottom to the top. you have a whole arc ahead of you.”
will jingren rise or fall?
as the music starts and the young contestant begins his solo performance, smiles are seen across the judges’ faces. the audio finally kicks in so the audience can hear what the judges do; a surprisingly stable voice, despite shakiness during the rap and imperfections in his dancing abilities. it’s not a winning performance, but it’s solid.
the judges applaud him regardless when he’s finished.
“to be honest, i wasn’t sure how this would go,” jihun confesses. “i was ready for another trainwreck on stage. you pleasantly surprised us, thank you for that. it wasn’t a perfect performance, but we can see your improvement already.”
“like jihun said, it wasn’t perfect. but we don’t expect perfection at this point. you’re all looking to become trainees, not to debut tomorrow. so i wouldn’t worry too much about being the best right now and just focus on continuing to improve your skills. you’re doing well, jingren,” yuna smiles through her feedback, encouraging the young hopeful before her.
ran is the last judge to speak, a little slow as she tries to find something to say that hasn’t already been shared by her peers. “it might be nice to see you enjoy the stage a little more,” she comments, “you looked a bit scared up there. i know this is all new and nerve-wracking but i’d love to see what you’re capable of if you can become a little more comfortable.”
“thank you, jingren,” jian congratulates the man on his performance as he’s ushered off the stage. “next, we’re excited to welcome HWANG YEJUN!”
“i like the way you dance,” it’s actually INHO’s voice that’s heard, the scene cutting to a practice room where the two young men rehearse together. yejun, the one on the receiving end of the compliment, looks flabbergasted more than anything.
“thank you,” he sputters out.
the editors do him small favors to be a little more interesting, peppering the scene with rosy pink hearts and painting a picture of a practice room crush, at least on one another’s skills if not literally in a romantic sense. clips of yejun in practice, both in the main group classes, alone, and with inho and other contestants play in a short montage. and then, a clip of his singing voice, without dancing. he has skill, to be sure. will he be able to show it to the judges?
the camera catches his deep breath, the tremble of his hands as he stands before the judges.
“are you nervous, yejun?” ran smiles into her microphone. “it’s alright, we just want to see what you’ve learned.”
kind words can only do so much for the poor man’s nerves. but like it or not, the music begins regardless.
his nerves don’t completely disappear even as his performance starts, a shake in his voice and a wobble in his step even as he does his best to project confidence during his song and dance. that voice that was heard in the practice rooms lacks some of its power now, yejun’s energy split between singing and dancing. had inho been right to compliment the other contestant? yejun’s not terrible, but he may be his own worst enemy.
at least he hits the final note and pose, ending the song on a high.
the judges applaud for a moment before yuna is the first to pick up her microphone. “yejun, do you have stage fright?” she asks suddenly, “we could all tell you lacked confidence in this performance. you shouldn’t, you sing well and your dancing isn’t bad either. but when you make yourself seem so small, how are we supposed to react?”
“my trainees like you,” jihun adds.
his commentary is interrupted by a clip of RENYI and DOHYUN discussing the contestants they’re supposed to be coaching. the camera shows yejun’s profile photo in renyi’s hand. “i think he’d be really good at a company that encourages his creativity, and we already know we get along well with him,” the trainee reveals the friendship he’s already fostered with yejun, though it’s yet to be caught on camera.
“i agree,” is all that’s heard from dohyun, though the cut is awkward as if he had more to say.
the scene returns to jihun, who has more to say: “but i don’t see why just yet. keep practicing and show us a better version of yourself next time. whatever it is your friends see in you, i’d like to see that too.”
“you’re here because we saw star potential in your audition, yejun,” ran cleans up the conversation kindly, unwilling to beat down a nervous contestant more than he’s already been beaten by himself. “i hope you’re able to show us that side again.”
yejun bows, utters his thanks, and leaves the stage. a gloomy atmosphere seems to hang in the air.
“well then,” jihun claps his hands together and leans back in his seat. “what do we have next?”
ITO SEIRA is the next contestant to showcase her skills, but before showing her on stage the screen cuts to the girl working in the practice room with HYUNKI. and then the screen splits to show her with JAEYOUNG. it splits again, now in quarters, to reveal her practice sessions with JIAYI and EUNWOL, and then into eight pieces with TOUMA, INHO, JIHYUN, and YUWOL, with the coaches CHAERIN, NAYOUNG, and SEOJUN, with JUEUN, STEVEN, and JORDAN.
the audio is filled with each time seira introduced herself to her fellow contestants, the voices multiplying clip over clip until it’s a whole chorus of introductions.
is there anyone who seira isn’t friends with? the captions suddenly question. it’s clear that the girl is quite the social butterfly, already befriending most of the contestants and half of the judges in the first week of practice alone.
“almost everyone was willing to help me,” seira appears in the interview room in the next shot, telling her story with a fond smile. “i was so surprised, nobody turned me away when i asked for help… we’re all in this together, we help each other. i don’t think there’s a single person i’m thankful for, i’m thankful for everyone, i hope people keep being willing to help, after all, this is a competition”.
and then, finally, seira appears on stage. the camera captures her bright personality, making it easy for the viewer to understand just how she was able to befriend the majority of the competition so quickly. “hello i am ito seira, my korean name is sunah, i am twenty-one years old, i’m thankful you’re willing to watch my performance, i hope you enjoy it!” the girl introduces herself, seemingly without so much as stopping for a breath.
“she must be a rapper,” the cameras catch jihun making the remark quietly to his fellow judges, who smile and suppress their giggles at the man’s rare attempt at humor.
the music plays again and very little is shown of seira’s performance, perhaps neither so good nor so bad that the editors felt the need to draw any special attention to any point of it. they are sure to capture the ending though, zooming in on the woman’s face as if an ending fairy in a music show. the camera catches the way she breathes heavily, despite trying to hide it.
“you’re a hard worker, aren’t you, seira?” yuna is the first to address the girl on stage, a fond smile on her lips. “we have staff report to us on your activities throughout practice as well watching your final performances, to see if you’ll be a good fit in any of our companies. i have to commend you for your collaborative efforts, even on a solo evaluation like this. it’s easy to get caught up in the competition but it seems that you have a knack for bringing people together.”
“you have some skill,” the ever-unimpressed jihun rubs his chin as he considers seira’s performance, seemingly undecided about his feelings on the matter. “you’re not perfect, obviously. you’re not debuting tomorrow. but there’s promise. and, as yuna so aptly put it, you have other talents that are just as important to have in an idol group. i think we’ll have to watch you more closely.”
“i heard you had a fall in practice, are you alright?” ran is the first to show concern for the contestant.
the scene suddenly cuts back to the practice room and seira’s practice session with JAEYOUNG. as they begin the dance, the girl somehow loses her balance and ends up flat on her back in the middle of practice.
silence fills the room for a moment, uncomfortable as if about to welcome in bad news to the wannabes working so hard.
jaeyoung breaks that heavy quiet; he laughs aloud. “how did you get on the floor like that?”
it turns out seira isn’t hurt, she’s smiling in return. “who knows? maybe i was adding breakdance into the dance.”
the screen returns to the evaluation stage and ran smiling warmly at the young woman before her. “i’m glad to hear you’re alright. please be careful when you practice, we’d hate to have to send you home due to any injuries. i’m excited to see what you’ll be able to show us next time.”
with those kind words, seira is dismissed from the stage.
"it wasn't exactly pleasant to see my name so close to the bottom," the scene fades into the next contestant, JANG HYUNKI, sitting in the interview room. clips from the previous episode play, the judges’ harsh words echoing over a clip of hyunki sitting quietly, as if haunting him like menacing ghosts. “it did make me want to work ten times harder to show everyone here and at home that i'm much more than what i showed in the audition."
will hyunki be able to show a better side of himself this time?
the scene cuts to the practice room, of hyunki and JUEUN standing in front of the mirror. "look,” jueun instructs him, “everybody knows you're a skilled dancer, but you've got to convince people that you're really feeling the music, and that involves using your face!"
hyunki, responding to her advice, straightens his posture and adjusts his face. “believable?” he asks.
“it looks like a customer service smile, if you know what i mean. your eyes are pretty much empty." jueun is honest with him, even if it’s not the results he probably wants to hear.
as the pair continues to rehearse, hyunki’s voice is heard over the scene: "i worked exceptionally hard, and felt more confident this time around. i had the critiques to work off of and those all gave me a good starting point."
the scene changes again, this time to just backstage. SARANG is seeing the contestant off, playfully slapping his backside as hyunki steps up to take his turn on stage. "go kill it! one slip up isn't gonna kill you. you're gonna dominate this whole thing!" the trainee assures his student.
"all the coaches were super helpful," hyunki is shown in the interview room once more before his performance begins. "if i had to pick one, sarang's advice was probably most helpful for me this time around."
clips of sarang’s time on last season flash across the screen in a quick montage. if anyone could teach hyunki to be more expressive on stage, it would be mr. charisma sarang himself.
the camera pauses on hyunki as he stands on stage, building tension in the silence as he waits for the music to start. when do better finally starts playing, the young man begins moving, rapping, singing. it’s immediately clear that he took the criticism to heart; this performance blows his audition away entirely.
the song comes to a close and the young man bows, awaiting the judges’ response. all three are smiling, a much better sign than the last time they evaluated this contestant.
“well, hyunki, i feel like we owe you an apology,” ran begins, her smile wider than all the rest. “what you were able to accomplish in such a short time is a testament to your skill. we recognized your good foundation, but your ability to apply critique is unmatched so far. you worked closely with sarang? that was a good choice. he won last season for his charisma and stage presence, which was exactly what you lacked in your audition. excellent job.”
“i never regret my words,” jihun leans back in his seat, showing he’s impressed in his subtle mannerisms. “but you did make me eat them this time. you overdanced a little to the point your vocals suffered, but i can’t say you weren’t engaging to watch this time. good job.” rare praise from the strictest judge.
yuna pauses, smiling at hyunki before she speaks. “well done,” she congratulates him. “the audition was a bad time to have an off-day. i’m so glad to see we were right to bring you on the show, and that one off-day is not indicative of your abilities. i’m excited to see if you can continue to improve at this rate throughout the show.”
“great job, hyunki,” ran praises the young man again as jian gestures him off stage.
“he really did a one-eighty,” jihun murmurs aloud.
“did he actually impress you?” ran teases.
jihun shrugs. “maybe. maybe not.”
“i feel for whoever has to follow up that performance,” yuna remarks.
the lucky contestant is KIM ARA. a short clip of the girl stretching with KAITO in the practice rooms floods the screen. “next time, i’m going to bring my foam roller here too,” she announces, seemingly dissatisfied with the quality of her stretch without it. still, she bends in half easily, still having the breath and strength to chat with the other contestant even as she stretches. it’s clear that she’s flexible and a skilled dancer.
“i won’t be defeated by my placing,” ara tells the cameras in the interview room, suddenly reminding her that she’s fourteenth, rather low in the ranks. “but i will use it as fuel to further my ambition. there is room for me to improve and hopefully rise up.”
the girl is seen climbing up the stairs to the stage next, ready to show the judges what she’s prepared.
the music starts and her flexibility in the practice room pays off as she reaches out to each movement in its fullest completion, never skimping or leaving a step incomplete even if the choreography is easy.
“i really did try my best to give a balanced performance and work on my singing,” ara’s voice is heard over the music just before the singing portion starts. and in the next moment, it’s her singing voice that’s heard through the speakers, surprisingly stable despite the dancing. her performance passes by quickly, the camera continuing to highlight the best parts of her dance ability, until the final pose is struck and she’s being greeted by the judges.
“ara, you did well,” yuna praises her immediately. “i wasn’t sure if you were going to sing well or not, but you even did well with rapping. i don’t think any of us expected that from you, so i want to congratulate you if you learned that well in such a short time or apologize if we overlooked your skill during your audition.”
“i do wish we saw a little more of your personality come through,” ran adds to yuna’s thoughts, “but honestly, it’s such a minor critique in the grand scheme of things. this was a solo performance but it felt like you were holding back a bit. it’s alright to be a little greedy in this stage. this is a competition, after all.”
jihun is quiet for a moment, collecting his thoughts. finally, he picks up his microphone. “i don’t think i have anything more to add,” he admits. “ran and yuna have more or less said it all. you’re very talented and we’d like to see what you’re able to do with this talent going forward. thank you.”
“we’re excited to welcome the next contestant to the stage, MOON JORDAN,” jian announces as the camera shows a brief clip of the contestant climbing up to the stage to take his position in the center.
the scene cuts to jordan in the practice rooms, rehearsing choreography that’s distinctly unfamiliar. what is he doing? the captions question as the young man runs through movements that the other contestants certainly had not been doing. was he given a different assignment than the rest?
“i attempt to turn things into my own to make it fun and enjoyable for those watching me,” jordan tells the camera in the interview room, a sort of confidence in his demeanor even as he’s sitting there. some might find it attractive; others might find it cocky.
back to the present—or at least back to the stage and the performance in front of the judges. jordan’s performance begins the same as every other contestant, dancing, rapping and singing do better in front of the three people who will decide his fate in this competition. but, as he nears the end, something is different. it appears that jordan has added his own dance break, something that no one else has dared to do before. it’s a risky move; just how will the judges respond?
silence falls on the room as the performance comes to a close. the cameras pan across the judges who scribble notes down on the papers in front of them before they give their verdict to the young man before them.
it’s yuna who speaks up first.
“moon jordan,” she reads his full name off the paper in front of her. “do you have a problem with following directions?”
a hush falls over the room again. yuna has been kind, if a bit strict with the other contestants so far. her voice nearly shakes, as if she’s holding in her anger for the sake of all the people watching her through the camera right now. a veteran idol knows how to take care of her image, after all.
“this was a test of your performance skills so we could better evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. this was not a test of your creativity or an invitation to modify the song given to you. this song may not have been performed by anyone else before this group of contestants, but that doesn’t give you the right to change it on a whim.” she sighs, trying to relieve some tension. “you know you’re all expected to perform this together on mcountdown later this week, right? how do you expect to do that when you’re incapable of following simple directions?”
even ran looks rather displeased, though she lets yuna do the bulk of the scolding. this was a mission right up lime entertainment’s alley anyway.
“you should keep in mind that we’re looking to sign trainees from this competition,” ran’s words are phrased more as suggestions for improvement than yuna’s had been. “your performance skills are important of course, but we’ll also be teaching you to improve your natural talents throughout this competition and if you’re signed to one of our companies. your intangible skills are just as important to us. that includes things like teamwork and listening skills and your ability to take critique and direction.”
jihun, the scariest of the judges, is the last to speak. he’s silent for a moment, scowling at the young man in front of them. “i can’t say anything,” he finally raises his microphone to his lips. “you did not complete the mission assigned to you, you just made up your own. i can’t critique a performance that doesn’t even remotely fit the rubric that was given to you.”
perhaps the lack of comment is the greatest insult of all.
jordan is dismissed from the stage. the scene changes to a staff member approaching the contestant backstage, pulling him aside from the other contestants as they deliver a message from the judges.
“i’m sorry, but it’s been decided that you will not be performing with the rest of the next gen contestants on mcountdown this week. the judges’ decision is final on this.”
a camera hangs onto jordan’s face for a moment longer, displaying his reaction for the world to see.
a moment later the scene shifts to PARK AHYOUNG backstage, chatting with various contestants as she awaits her turn. a staff member taps her on the shoulder and lets her know that it’s her turn on stage. jian’s voice can be heard announcing the girl to the stage, but just after the camera watches ahyoung hurry off to her position it shifts to her in the interview room, speaking her mind.
"i guess i've never really danced before outside of like, the club,” the young woman shares, her words met with an uncomfortable silence after she speaks them. “i'm a great dancer in the club, don't get me wrong, but it's not really the same thing.”
the scene cuts to her practice session with YUWOL, the same that had been shown earlier in the episode. now, however, the camera focuses on ahyoung’s dance moves as the pair shake off their nerves with random dancing. how did you learn these moves…? the captions question, though no outright accusations are made.
finally, the camera cuts to ahyoung on stage before the judges. as the music begins, so does her performance, and the judges’ sharp eyes watch her every movement, their ears listening to every word, as they assess her performance.
she starts strong, as many of the contestants do, but as do better goes on, she seems to be losing steam. her voice becomes more strained and breathless, her dance lacks some of the energy it had in the beginning. the camera flashes to jihun for a moment, his stern glance as ahyoung’s heavy breathing is exaggerated on the audio.
as the song wraps up, the judges scribble down some final notes on the papers in front of them.
it’s jihun to speak first this time. “i think we may have rated you too highly based on your audition,” he admits a mistake, though only to point out the failures of the contestant in front of him. “let’s just say what you and i both already know; you lack endurance. if you smoke, quit now. work on cardio at the gym. you won’t survive this competition with your current condition. i’m saying this for your health.” he seems to attempt to extend some kindness, even if it’s still tough love.
“i’m more concerned with your work ethic, to be honest,” yuna frowns at the wannabe before her. “plenty of your competitors came in with little experience in dancing. they’ve improved their endurance a lot in the short time they’ve been with us. i think you’re taking practice too lightly. do you want to be here? or would you rather be at the club?” yuna becomes vaguely accusatory, perhaps a bit sensitive as an idol herself who has heard all of these criticisms before. maybe it’s better for ahyoung to hear them now from someone who genuinely wants to see her improvement instead of blasted a thousand times at her online by anonymous netizens who have nothing better to do but complain.
“you’re a naturally gifted performer,” ran starts with compliments, perhaps trying to soften the blow of her fellow judges before her. “you definitely shine and capture attention easily on stage. but that’s not enough past this point. please continue to improve your skills, you’re here because we saw your potential and we want to see how great you can become. thank you, ahyoung.”
the contestant is dismissed from the stage.
"i'm not gonna pretend i'm an expert, but i had fun.” ahyoung tells the camera in the interview room. it almost seems like she didn’t take the judges’ criticism to heart at all…
“up next, we’ll be watching the performance of RYEO JIHYUN!” as jian announces the next contestant up to the stage, the camera cuts to jihyun climbing the steps and waving to the judges with a smile, a confidence in his movements even as he approaches what’s likely the most nerve-wracking part of this competition so far.
“why are you even here?" the scene cuts suddenly, TOUMA and jihyun in a practice room stretching together as they prepare to run through the dance again. the camera seems particularly interested in touma’s question, however. it seems a bit inflammatory, bordering on accusatory. is this a rivalry budding already? touma sighs. "is this a side gig to you? are you here to feel something again?" neither is a very charitable interpretation of jihyun’s participation in the show.
“can you guess which is right then?” jihyun retorts, seemingly not giving an answer to the other contestant. at least he can handle himself well without starting a true altercation, verbal or otherwise.
“there was some fear and guilt that was lingering at the back of my head.” the scene cuts to jihyun in the interview room quickly. is touma bullying other contestants? the accusation is never verbalized or written anywhere on screen, but the viewer may start to get a sense of the story that’s being told here.
regardless of backstage practice drama, jihyun takes the stage anyway. his performance begins and jihyun seems to capture the spirit of the song well; tough, fighting for glory and recognition, and unafraid of anyone in the room, yet still having fun with every step. maybe his supposed spat with touma had helped him find his attitude for the performance. he’s captivating on stage regardless, almost sensual in the way he moves.
but the illusion of the competitor is shattered at the very end when jihyun sends a heart to the camera instead of maintaining the same persona he had for the entire duration of do better.
a laugh bubbles up from the judges without their permission, both jihun and ran having to cover their mouths to try to stifle the giggles. yuna just smiles, though it’s obvious she’s also amused.
“what happened at the end?” jihun questions immediately, too amused to think about anything else. “you spent the last three minutes convincing us that you were really here to ‘do better’ than all the rest of the contestants… and then ending with aegyo?” it appears that jihyun has not yet earned his way out of the ‘strange crowd’ among the contestants. “i’ll be honest with you, it ruined the performance. it doesn’t matter how well you sang and danced, all i’ll remember is feeling like you played a joke on us at the end. staying strong and following the mood for the entire song can make a performance. in this case, it broke.”
“aside from the heart,” yuna picks up her microphone next, “your rap skills are… well, they’re lacking. while not every idol needs to be an all-rounder, it is important to have some foundations in all skills. if you debut as a soloist, it allows you to release a more diverse portfolio of music. in a group, it allows you to fill in for a member if a situation should occur that demands it. you may not enjoy it, but i still recommend developing your basics better in the future.”
ran smiles warmly at the contestant before speaking. “first, i’d like to apologize for laughing. that was unprofessional of us, but you did take us by surprise. i didn’t think i could still be surprised like that,” she admits. “you’re already showing signs of improvement, but i think we would have liked to see a bit more from you this week. i don’t think we saw anything surprising, like your skills didn’t improve so much from the last time we saw your perform that there’s much to talk about. please continue to practice and improve. you’re here because we want to see everything that you’re capable of.”
“thank you, jihyun,” jian announces his departure from the stage.
“it was something relatively new to me,” jihyun admits to the interview camera, “i think i did quite well for my first time, and i’m satisfied with it. but of course, i’m not stopping at just being satisfied. i’m going to be even better the next time and come back with an improved version of myself.”
the camera flashes to touma’s face for a moment once more, gauging his reaction to his supposed rival’s critique and response.
“RYU INHO?” the scene cuts to the next contestant quickly, CHAERIN calling out a contestant’s name from a clipboard in front of her as she meets some of the participants she’s in charge of. "is this your first time singing and dancing at the same time?"
"ya, noona, so formal," inho starts joking with her immediately, obviously comfortable with the coach far more quickly than his fellow participants had been. is his familiarity disrespect to the young woman in charge of helping him grow?
he does admit it, though: "i'm not much of a dancer at all, let alone singing and dancing at the same time."
cutting to the interview room, inho addresses the camera. "i wasn't expecting such a high ranking," he admits, but then after a short cut to remind the viewer of inho’s fourth-place ranking, he issues a promising statement: "i plan on continuing to do what got me there in the first place. that is giving everything i do my absolute best effort, and then some. alongside ensuring i use my resources, such as the coaches.”
oh, so is the young man trying to schmooze with the coaches? the editing certainly seems to imply such.
chaerin, seemingly only slightly ruffled by his overfamiliar greeting, clears her throat and looks down at her clipboard again. "have you memorized the choreography, at least?" she steps toward inho, not backing down in the slightest, her brow knit together in concern. chaerin, at least, is all business.
the scene cuts to a different time and place, now with inho and SEOJUN. again, inho greets the coach with unprecedented familiarity: "didn't expect to see you here. how have you been? it's been a while."
seojun makes no attempt to hide the friendly relationship he apparently has with inho. "didn't expect to see you here either," he responds amicably, “i've been good. busy since i've been training a lot. glad i get to see you again."
the scene cuts abruptly again to seojun in the interview room this time. “would it be biased if i mentioned inho?” he asks.
yes, it most certainly would be.
at least the cameras don’t do anything further to damage inho’s reputation on the show, cutting away again to the young man taking the stage in front of the judges. his smile is confident, cocky, as if already in character for the performance he’s about to give.
the music starts; inho dances, raps, and sings. there’s moments when the camera catches that confident smirk fading from his face, unable to remember to hold it throughout the performance. it catches the moments where he pauses and catches his breath; while it’s in the choreography, the heaviness of his breathing almost becomes distracting. his voice stays stable for the most part, and the raps are decent from a contestant who doesn’t have a ton of experience in this area.
inho is gasping for breath as he holds the final pose. the judges furiously scribble notes down in front of them, capturing their last thoughts for when they have to rank all of the contestants later.
“inho, i think you also need to work on your cardio,” yuna half-teases the contestant with a smile on her lips. “i was disappointed in your performance not because of your skills, but because i felt that your breathing distracted me from your abilities. ‘ah, if only he had the strength…’ that sort of feeling.”
“you sing well and your rap and dance wasn’t bad,” ran compliments the contestant, “especially for your first time attempting these things. but you’ll have to work harder to maintain your position in this competition. there are so many talented participants this season… it’s not enough to only be a good singer anymore. i hope you can improve quickly.”
jihun is the last to leave his remarks: “taking advantage of the resources offered to you is good. however, i’d be more careful to watch your image,” he advises on the content the coaches have seen of the practice sessions rather than the performance in front of him, which the other judges had already covered well. “please be sure to mind your manners with our trainee coaches. even if you’re friends outside of work, it’s important to give them the proper respect in our buildings and in front of your fellow contestants. they’re trying to help all of you improve, so they need to be taken seriously.”
“otherwise, your performance was mediocre. i expected better.” jihun shrugs.
inho is dismissed from the stage just after, the cameras following him to capture the initial reaction on his face to the judges’ critiques.
“RYU SIWOO is next,” ran reads from a cue card in front of her. “wasn’t he the one with all of the luxury brand clothes?”
the camera cuts to siwoo in the practice room, somehow still wearing luxury clothing items as the camera identifies the sweat-soaked t-shirt he’s wearing as ralph lauren.
a disembodied staff member’s voice is heard behind the camera in the interview room, the cut trained on siwoo and his reactions as they ask the question: “you were introduced as someone who comes from money and luxury brands. how do you feel about that?”
siwoo pauses uncomfortably, seemingly put on the spot. “i’m…thankful for the interest,” he words his response carefully, “i’m really interested in fashion and i like to dress up a little. so i guess they aren’t completely wrong.”
he seems to address the camera a little more directly in his next statement: “i’m a lot more than just that though. i hope it shines through on the show.”
and just what does he show? the scene cuts to he and NAYOUNG in a practice room, the trainee coach trying to help him learn do better and perfect his performance.
“fix your posture,” nayoung barks orders like a drill sergeant. “stand up straight and keep your head straight as you sing. it'll support your diaphragm and make this easier." she seemingly has an endless tirade of critique for his performance. the editors animate a hammer dropping on siwoo’s head. this is almost as tough as the military… the captions read.
but nayoung wouldn’t say such things unless the critique was warranted. the next several seconds play several of siwoo’s failures and shortcomings and nayoung’s quick corrections, her words as sharp as a whip as they lash out at every little mistake that her student makes. is siwoo really more than the money and luxury he comes from? at least he seems to take the critique well.
the scene cuts to the stage, siwoo already introduced by jian and ready to begin his performance. while he may seem a bit nervous in the beginning, he’s smiling by the end. there’s mistakes in his performance and he’s breathing heavily like many of the previous contestants; maybe nayoung wasn’t harsh enough on him.
“siwoo, do you think you can get by on looks alone?” jihun rips into the contestant early, not pausing for more than a moment before tearing into his performance. “i heard that you worked closely with the coaches, but i doubt that any of them would have let you come on stage with a performance like this. please take advice from the song next time; do better.”
“ah,” ran seems a bit taken aback by jihun’s harsh words. he’s not incorrect though. “this is still a bit unfamiliar, isn’t it?” she tries to sympathize, “you don’t look like you’re enjoying being on stage. when you smile, it looks like it’s just something you think should be done rather than something you’re actually feeling. even if you don’t like the song, you should be trying to make your audience fall in love with it. convince us that it’s the best thing ever, even if you secretly don’t agree. it’ll make you a better performer.”
yuna frowns into her microphone. “this choreography was rather simple, but you still struggled to execute it. i understand we’re trying to move quickly through this competition, but please do not neglect your basics. strong fundamentals will help you move farther down this competition than quickly learning one dance and forgetting about it immediately afterwards. this goes for your singing too.”
just as it seems that the judges are about to dismiss siwoo, jihun suddenly adds one more complaint: “also, what’s wrong with the name NEXT GEN?” he accuses the contestant.
the scene changes, giving context to jihun’s words, as it brings up a practice room with JAEYOUNG. “i was just thinking about the name next gen,” siwoo complains, “an idol survival show called next gen. who comes up with these names?”
the cameras cut back to siwoo before the judges, jihun’s arms folded crossly in front of his chest. “i thought we made it clear that we’re looking for the talent to lead the next generation of kpop. you might want to decide if you really want to be a part of that.” there’s a subtle threat to jihun’s words; disrespect the judges and face the consequences.
siwoo is finally allowed to exit the stage.
the scene cuts to the next contestant and, coincidentally, the very same as the young man siwoo had been complaining about the name of the show to: SONG JAEYOUNG. jaeyoung starts in the interview room, a disembodied voice questioning him from behind the camera. “you didn’t seem very happy with your current placement,” a soft feminine voice remarks.
“yeah, i’m not,” jaeyoung scoffs, “but that’s not surprising, is it? it’s not a very good ranking, all things considered.”
a quick reminder that jaeyoung placed sixteenth out of twenty-one total contestants last week plays across the screen.
“what did you find challenging during training?” the same voice asks him.
jaeyoung’s answer is unhelpful. “a bunch of things,” is all he says.
to try to shed some light on his practice experience, the camera cuts to jaeyoung and JUEUN practicing together. during a quiet moment, jueun strikes up conversation.
“i heard you’re good at spinning things,” jueun asks, “can you spin this?” she hands him a water bottle.
“i swear, people will only remember me for that now,” jaeyoung appears in the interview room once again, clearly annoyed with the question his fellow contestant had asked him.
"it's funny that that's what's making rounds and not the performance itself,” he responds just as wryly in person as well, though he ultimately takes the bottle to demonstrate his unique ability. “jueun. this is for you…” he somehow still sounds sarcastic.
and, frankly, the cameras focus more on jueun’s reaction than they do on jaeyoung.
little else is shown of his practice sessions before jian is announcing jaeyoung’s name on stage, inviting the competitor to begin his performance for the judges. his introduction is short, though maybe that’s for the best considering how hostile all of his moments in the interview room have been thus so far. instead, he wastes no time showing his performance.
jaeyoung is a little different from the other contestants. while there’s others also proficient in rap, he spits the words out with a particular kind of venom. the words seem like a challenge, like an attack on anyone who dares to critique him.
the performance is cut midway to the interview room again. “do you think you did better with this performance?” the same disembodied voice asks.
“i put my all into it, that’s what i can say,” jaeyoung responds, “i danced, i sang, i rapped. it’s not easy, anyone here can tell you. but i wanted to make sure people hear; that i’m not just yelling.”
it cuts back to his performance, where it does very much seem like he’s yelling as he sings and dances, his perceived anger boiling over in the face of the judges. jaeyoung bows at the end of his performance, punctuating it with a polite gesture at least.
“you certainly have spirit,” ran decides to speak first, cutting off jihun who was reaching for his microphone first. “and passion is so necessary in this industry, it’s good to see. i do think your performance was a little… intense for this song. we want you to do better like the song says, but it shouldn’t sound like you’re declaring war either. if you could work on your balance in your performance the same way you’re able to balance things on your fingers to spin them, you’ll be able to really shine in front of us.” ran, as always, advises kindly.
jihun is never nearly as kind. he’s ready to jump in and say his piece before yuna can also stop him. “you need an attitude check,” he condemns the contestant in front of the panel immediately. “you’re not the best contestant here. you’re just not. so instead of complaining about your rank, do something about it. being angry at us and our staff will not change your performance. if anything, it’ll make your life harder here. i’ll tell you the same thing i tell dissatisfied trainees: you can get with the program or get out.”
an uncomfortable pause falls over the room as yuna attempts to pick up her microphone and say her own advice and critique. that is, assuming jaeyoung and his supposed hot temper will still listen to anything after being scolded by jihun.
“one of the most important traits a trainee can have is their ability to accept critique,” yuna tries to explain. “it feels like you lack that ability right now. until you’re able to hear us with an open mind, there’s nothing we can do to help you improve.” she keeps her feedback short, turning her mic off and placing it on the desk in front of her as soon as she’s done.
jaeyoung marches off stage as soon as he’s dismissed. the judges don’t look worried about whether they’ve offended him or not, though the atmosphere still seems tense even in his wake.
“i don’t know about you, but i could use a break,” ran suggests to her fellow judges.
jihun shakes his head. “we’re almost done here. let’s just hope our next performer is a breath of fresh air.”
they watch as jian introduces SONG JIAYI and welcomes the young lady to the stage. jiayi smiles brightly to the judges as she takes her spot on stage. but the performances never start so quickly. instead, the viewer is taken back to jiayi’s time in the practice room, working with JINGREN. the pair are talking in a different language, mandarin based on the chinese flags that suddenly appear on screen around them. are they keeping secrets? are they gossipping about their fellow contestants?
after a few comments back and forth, the broadcast finally replays them with subtitles in korean.
“you seem to be a natural at catching on to the choreography compared to me,” jingren compliments the woman.
“i’ve always been a dancer,” jiayi explains with a rather vain flip of her hair. “i’m confident i’d do it perfectly.”
the cameras show jiayi in the interview room, now speaking korean with the staff asking questions from behind the cameras. “i have to rank myself number one until proven otherwise,” she tells the staff confidently.
she seems to have a bit of an ego… the captions spare no moment to criticize the woman’s confidence. however, it’s only empty boasting if she’s unable to back it up with her actual abilities. the scene shifts back to the stage in front of the judges and jiayi’s confident smile. "i practiced long and hard to show the judges something i'm proud of.” her voice echoes over the image of her meeting the judges’ eyes.
the music begins and it’s clear immediately that jiayi’s confidence in her dancing is not completely unfounded. she’s sharp, precise, and fluid when the movements call for it. where it begins to lack refinement is in her voice. yuna had called her voice weak in the previous episode, and it seems that that critique comes back to haunt jiayi even now.
at least her breath control is decent. by the time she’s wrapping up the song, she’s not half as gassed as some of the previous contestants had been.
the cameras cut to the judges, who don’t look nearly as frustrated or upset as they had been when giving feedback to the previous contestant. jihun may not be smiling and ran may smile even when she’s upset, but the smile on yuna’s lips tells the viewers all they need to know about the atmosphere at the judges’ table.
“jiayi, you’re right to be confident in your dancing,” yuna begins, addressing the girl rather frankly. “you clearly have a strong foundation there and there’s not much for me to say. but your voice is still lacking. work closely with your vocal instructor for the next challenge. just like your body, your voice is a muscle that needs to be trained and exercised. since you haven’t done that much before, it’s not going to develop overnight. but keep working at it diligently to improve.”
“just because you’re a good dancer doesn’t mean you’ll make a good trainee or idol,” jihun gives his critique much more harshly, as per usual. “do you want to be a backup dancer or an idol? listen to yuna and follow her advice, or else your future will be at the back of the stage supporting the main show.”
“be nice,” ran chides jihun gently, seeming to think he crossed a line with his latest criticism. “jiayi, you’re a beautiful girl and an excellent dancer. as yuna and jihun have said, that’s only half of what you need to be an idol. the good news is that there’s still time to work on the other half. we enjoyed your performance and i can’t wait to see you continue to grow.”
ran leads all three judges in a round of applause as they release the girl from the stage.
“up next we’d like to welcome back a familiar face,” jian announces from her spot in the center of the stage. “back again to chase down his dreams of being an idol, please welcome STEVEN PARK!”
a shaky smile from the young man floods the screen before fading away to a short recap from last season’s appearances. steven had been a little… unrefined at that point, to put it lightly. he joked around in practice, he never took anything too seriously. ultimately, it had been his downfall and the reason he was removed from the show before the finale. and despite the humiliation, the harsh words from the judges, and not even making it to the end let alone earning a chance at a contract, he’s back. not only is he back, but he took third place in the last episode. has steven park turned over a new leaf after all?
“i kinda missed the grind,” steven’s voice is heard as clips of him practicing with the new group of contestants flicker across the screen.
a voice is heard from behind the camera as steven sits in the interview room. “compared to last season, do you think you’ve improved enough?”
“i’d like to say that i have,” steven smiles.
the scene cuts to the judges briefly as they wait for the young man’s performance. they had already mentioned looking forward to him once; will he surprise them? or will it be the same old steven park who they had to eliminate last year?
“ah, finally,” yuna smiles as she watches steven take the stage. “he looks a bit nervous… good.” one might think that she wants to terrify the young wannabes if they didn’t know better.
“be on your best behavior in front of the cameras,” another flashback to the practice rooms shows steven with JUEUN, the latter receiving advice from the more experienced contestant on this show. he rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. “i’m not sure how great of tips i can give you… i didn’t last a long time here.”
steven’s performance finally is set to begin. the camera focuses in on him, capturing the slightest twitches in his expression that betray his anxiety. he’s taking this more seriously than he had last season, that’s immediately apparent. the music starts, and steven begins.
“he dances well,” ran murmurs to her fellow judges midway through the performance, the cameras suddenly picking up on her instead of focused on steven. “but he’s not making eye contact with any of us, is he?”
the other two judges shake their heads to confirm ran’s assumption.
steven is a talented dancer, that’s for certain. he controls his movements well, leaving himself with enough energy to breathe (and therefore sing and rap). “i think i could have probably worked a little more on the vocals,” his voice is heard over the dimmed sounds of his do better performance for a moment, before the original audio turns up again and the shakes and instability in steven’s voice can be heard more clearly by the audience now that they’ve been pointed out. he succeeds in finishing the performance though, and the judges remain quiet as they wait to dole out judgement.
“steven,” jihun begins, the slightest smile tugging at his lips, “are you afraid of us?”
a chorus of giggles goes up from the judges. of course steven is nervous around them, who wouldn’t be? perhaps steven doubly so after his previous experiences.
“you should know that we’re only hard on your when we think you’re not living up to your abilities or when you need a little tough love to reach your potential. there’s nothing for us to scold you about right now.” the man smiles a little more openly, suddenly softened in front of this contestant. “in fact, you did really well. it would have been nice if your voice had improved more since last season, but we can work with that.”
“congratulations on getting a compliment out of jihun!” ran exclaims, acknowledging that this is a major accomplishment for the man on stage. “those were probably the best words we could have told you, weren’t they? it’s true, we can tell already that you’ve matured a lot since we last saw you. however… i wish you weren’t so afraid of us.”
a short clip replays of every time steven had looked toward the judges but never quite at them, always above, below, or to the side of where they were actually sitting. the avoidance seems painfully obvious in the compilation.
“remember that until we invite others to sit in, we are your audience. you’re performing for us, so you should try to connect with us or… at least have the confidence to look at us. you’re a good performers when you’re focused, steven. i’d like to see you shine.” ran smiles warmly, hoping her advice is taken to heart.
yuna is the third and final judge to speak. “as a final word of advice, i’d try to keep in mind that you are the single most experienced contestant on this season. the others may start looking to you for leadership and guidance. try not to shy away from this opportunity; you’ll have more chances to shine by helping the people around you grow quickly as well. and it’s good to see you again, steven,” yuna smiles herself.
it seems the judges have laid aside their past perceptions of steven and are looking forward to what he can show on this season. the three whisper and nod approvingly among themselves as they prepare for the next contestant.
“up next is YAMAMOTO KAITO,” jian announces, but rather than show the contestant on stage the scene shifts instead to kaito in the interview room.
"what was the greatest challenge during this mission?" a voice from behind the camera asks him.
"i think that the greatest challenge was probably pushing myself too hard,” it may sound like a humble brag from kaito, but clips of him practicing until the wee hours in the morning, only to return nearly at the crack of dawn the next day fade into the screen, still overlaid with his own voice. he’s seen at different times with TOUMA, INHO, and ARA. “i tend to overwork myself when it comes to various things, in this case practicing and not being completely satisfied with my personal results."
the scene is overtaken by a particular practice session with TOUMA. it’s late, based on the quick cut to the clock on the wall, but things seem to running well as the two young men run through their rehearsal of do better again. it all comes to a halt as kaito makes a mistake, cutting himself off with a loud groan and kicking the air in frustration. “seriously!” he shouts out his frustration before turning to touma apologetically. “one more time…. just…. one more…”
kaito’s exhaustion is clear. from the way his shirt is soaked with his own sweat to the dark circles under his eyes, it’s hard to miss. touma picks up on it too, if the short temper tantrum hadn’t been enough to signal something was wrong.
“this is a pretty good place to stop, i think,” touma suggests, laying a hand on kaito’s shoulder gently, “you did a lot already, you can pick it back up another day?”
“touma actually I've known for a while now.” the scene cuts back to kaito’s interview. “he's one that really helped when i was pushing myself too hard, again, and helped me realize that i needed a break before i ended up probably passing out, or worse."
back in the practice room, kaito has to acknowledge touma’s suggestion. “maybe you’re right…” he admits.
“you’re already doing great. you’re getting fluid!” touma encourages his friend. “take a deep breath.”
you’re already doing great, kaito! even the captions cheer him on with soft sound effects, trying to ease the young man’s pressure on himself.
“i just feel like i could be better. you know?” kaito confesses aloud and surely the other contestants can relate. so many of them must feel the pressure as the competition is kicking off with such a difficult challenge, and the looming threat of a live performance.
"i'm actually really confident,” kaito tells the camera once more, “with the amount of practice that [i] put in i'd like to say that i did the very best that i could.”
the scene cuts to kaito standing on stage before the judges. the camera catches his deep breath, perhaps the only thing betraying his nerves, as he waits for the music to start. and kaito’s practice does pay off; he dances well, though his singing and rapping struggles some with the sheer amount of effort he puts into his movements. he’s breathing heavily by the end of the performance, not unexpectedly, and the judges give him a short round of applause as he’s finally able to relax and prepare himself for their feedback.
“you’re really fun to watch perform, kaito,” ran begins with a smile. “you look like you’re genuinely enjoying every minute on stage and that’s always a pleasure for the audience to watch you do what you love. i do think your singing needs some attention. we can tell you worked hard, but i’d like to see you improve further moving forward.”
“we heard that you’re quite the practice bug,” yuna takes over next, “and it’s great to hear that you’re taking this competition seriously. it’s what we want to see from our contestants. but we don’t want to see you get hurt. things will only get more challenging from this point onward so please be sure to keep yourself healthy even as you’re rehearsing. we would hate for you to have to exit the show early due to injury or illness.” the judges seem genuinely concerned for the participants’ health.
jihun is the final judge to speak, his words never overly kind or as soft as those that came before him. “ran saying you need to work on your singing was an understatement,” he’s as harsh as always. “even rappers need to be able to understand how to carry a tune. while the future will allow you to play to your strengths more, please do not disregard practicing your vocal fundamentals. they’ll only help you as a rapper as well.”
“great job, kaito,” ran congratulates him once more before he’s dismissed from the stage. “i like him,” she tells her fellow judges once he’s out of sight. yuna smiles her approval, though jihun only frowns.
“our final contestant performing today is YOON EUNWOL,” jian announces from the stage, drawing the judges’ attention back to the next contestant up.
the scene shifts to a practice room, eunwol sitting by himself as other contestants practice nearby. is he hurt? he seems to be fine, physically. but a rather forlorn expression on his face seems to betray that there’s more going on in his head that meets the eye.
“my greatest challenge?” eunwol is seen in the interview room. “working with others, acquaintances and strangers. well not strangers, fellow contestants, challengers. i’m not sure what we are called.”
is it awkwardness that keeps him from interacting with others? thankfully, there’s a social butterfly ready to help everyone out at next gen. SEIRA approaches eunwol with a smile. “wanna go over the moves with me? i keep forgetting them,” she offers.
"are you sure you want my help? i didn't place high and blanked," eunwol’s self-deprecation doesn’t cease even in the face of next gen’s friendliest participant. “i am currently debating with myself about walking out that door. i don't belong here."
the editors leave an awkward pause between eunwol’s confession, before seira has a chance to respond. she’s determined not to be rejected, though. “last year’s season, the person who originally placed last made it all the way to the final,” she smiles warmly again, “who says you don’t belong here? do you know how many people auditioned for the show, and only twenty-one made it, you passed the auditions, you deserve to be here”.
it seems to convince eunwol enough and the two begin to work together, seira helping him to feel more comfortable in this competition through being the one to ask him for help.
eunwol survives, despite the hardships, and finds himself standing in front of the judges for his performance. the three wait patiently for the music to begin again; they may very well be sick of hearing do better after about twenty times today.
the music begins, and it’s clear very quickly that eunwol has taken a different approach than many of the others. a cut back to the interview room, and the young man explains himself: “well i’m not sure if it will work, but i did try and be cute,” he tells the cameras. the scene cuts back to his performance and the movements he modified to fit his vibe better. the performance plays in its entirety uninterrupted, not once betraying the judges’ reactions to the rather bold choice until it comes to a close, eunwol smiling brightly as he holds the final pose.
a pause takes over the room as the judges frown into their notes.
“eunwol, what about do better made you think that it was a cute song?” jihun wastes no time with his criticism. “this is a solo performance, but keep in mind that you’ll be performing this with a group very soon. we’re here to evaluate your performance skills but you covered them up with your cutesy act, so i’m forced to believe that you’re actually quite lacking. is that the message you meant to send us?”
jihun doesn’t stop laying into the contestant with his harsh words. “if you don’t want to be here, you’re welcome to leave. there’s thousands of children and young adults around the world who want to be exactly in the spot you’re in right now. if you’re not grateful for this opportunity, you may as well do them a favor and drop out now.”
quiet uneasiness lingers in the few seconds after jihun finishes his tirade. it’s ran who’s bold enough to break the silence. “eunwol, even if you don’t trust yourself, you need to trust us as professionals who have been discovering and refining talent for years now. if we didn’t want to see more from you, you would not be here right now. i hope to see better effort from you in the next challenge, but i do hope to see you still with us for that.”
yuna sighs, the tension in the room still hanging vaguely in the air around them. she’s not so much of a fan of when jihun gets heated. “you’ll need to re-learn do better to do it properly for the mcountdown performance with the other contestants. in a team, you can’t just do your own thing. that’s going to be more important going forward, so please try to make an effort to be more of a team player. working with others is how you’ll succeed.”
eunwol all but sprints off the stage as soon as he’s dismissed. he’s looking a bit green, so the judges make no further comment.
with all performances complete, it’s time to gather the contestants to the stage as one big group. jian smiles at them as they take their places, the judges’ deliberation finishing up in the background behind them.
“contestants, you’ve been re-ranked based on your performances today. we’ll be revealing your positions from last place to first.”
one by one, the numbers are revealed. it shouldn’t be a surprise that moon jordan takes last place, his punishment for going rogue still weighing heavily on his shoulders. things start to get exciting with the top five, however. stevie, hangyeol, hyunki, and ara all have a shot at being the centers of their respective genders.
“in fifth place is… one of the girls,” jian announces. “so we’ll know who our female center is once this rank is announced. who do you think it will be?” she asks a few of the contestants, most declining to give an answer. jueun and ara’s faces are watched closely by the cameras.
“our fifth place contestant for episode two is… han jueun,” jian finally announces. the participants congratulate ara and applaud jueun, now that the battle has been decided. stevie, hangyeol, and hyunki are all still in the running.
it’s revealed, however, that stevie took fourth place for this particular episode. it’s still a great rank, but it brings hyunki and hangyeol, rivals set up by the judges since the first episode, into the final competition.
“in third place…” jian draws out the tension, the camera zooming in on each potential center’s face as they try to guess whose name will be on her lips in mere seconds. “please congratulate… choi hangyeol!” the top three ranks are revealed at once, hangyeol in third, just below ara, and hyunki taking first place for episode two. “congratulations hyunki, ara, you’ll be our male and female center for your performance of do better on mcountdown next week. everyone, please give yourselves a round of applause!”
a roar from the contestants goes up, though some may be lamenting their ranks.
“i have good news for all of you; there will be no eliminations this episode. however, next episode they will begin. those of you in lower ranks should do everything you can to rise quickly. those in higher ranks, don’t get too comfortable! you’ve seen how high hyunki jumped up, the same thing could happen in the wrong direction to any of you,” she warns the idol wannabes carefully, hoping they know how serious the next challenge will be.
“your next mission is the PERFORMANCE EVALUATION,” she announces. “this will be a head-to-head teamwork mission lead by our trainee coaches,” the camera pans to SARANG, RENYI, SEOJUN, NAYOUNG, DOHYUN, and CHAERIN briefly. “each of our trainees will be overseeing their own team. coaches, your responsibility is to be a guide and resource for your team, but not a leader. the contestants are being challenged to come up with their own unique performance of a senior’s song from each company.”
“this is your chance to show your creativity and how you can transform an existing song to be your own,” jian instructs the contestants. “but here’s the twist: two teams will have the same song. you’ll be battling head to head for who was able to create the better performance. the winning team will be entirely safe from eliminations. the losing team… not so much.” a hush falls over the crowd as the stakes are finally revealed.
“take a look at your team assignments,” she gestures up at the massive screen, which already shows six teams, their assigned coaches, and what song they’re tasked with making their own. “we can’t wait to see what you’ll show us next week.”
do better plays one more time as the title card takes over the screen, episode two finally complete.
it’s been a whole year since the three ceos have sat in the same room. they appear one by one, emerging into a black-clothed studio space through the door centered in the camera frame. YOON JIHUN of STUDIO DELTA is first, smiling and greeting the mnet staff as he takes his seat. he’s followed closely behind by SEO RAN, the namesake of SR MEDIA with an even brighter smile. she pauses for a moment, singling out a staff member and running over to give them a hug. it’s clear she remembers this person from last season; they exchange a few short words before she’s ushered to her seat beside her fellow ceo. last but certainly not least to the party is the representative of LIME ENTERTAINMENT, YUNA. while she may not be an executive like her fellow judges, she holds a certain presence of her own even as she smiles and takes her seat on the opposite side of ran.
“i didn’t realize how much i missed this,” yuna remarks, a smile on her lips.
“i’m excited for this season,” ran agrees, “we were treated to some amazing talents last year and i’ve heard that the quality and caliber of the auditionees has only improved this year.”
“we’ll see.” jihun again takes the role of the antagonist, arms folded and the slightest frown on his lips as if he refuses to be impressed by anyone today.
ran hits his arm lightly, a smile still on her lips. “don’t be a grouch,” she chides him, “we’re in for a treat today.”
there is no emcee yet for the first episode, just the three judges and a series of television monitors in front of them. at first, they only display the NEXT GEN logo, though the screens change soon enough. on each monitor, there seems to be a different angle of the same room, like the studio has been turned into a massive editor’s booth. the judges look around expectantly, obviously not at all surprised by their scenery. this was all part of the plan.
“the auditionees think that we’re too busy to watch them,” ran explains directly to the camera, sitting in a room not entirely dissimilar to the interview backdrop used in the first season. it seems even the judges want to share their minds this season. “but actually, we’re watching their whole audition process. from the time they walk in the front door and check-in with the staff, we have them all live on the screens in front of us. i almost felt like a spy.”
“it really allowed us to see what they’d be like with their guards down,” yuna explains as she takes over the screen next, “auditions are nerve-wracking, especially if you want something really bad. but sitting in front of your idols? that’s a whole new level of fear and anxiety. i feel like this gave us a chance to start to get to know everyone much deeper than if we were standing in the room with them.”
a quickly edited clip of auditionees showing parts of their skills back to back to back takes over the screen for a moment, a preview of the talent that is to come. jihun’s voice plays over the image: “this gives us the opportunity to examine them from all angles. how do they conduct themselves among their competition? how do they treat the staff? appearance and skills are important to become an idol, we can’t deny that, but the intangible efforts are important to building a healthy team as well.”
“shall we begin?” jihun glances at the other judges, a rare smile on his lips. the others nod and verbalize their agreement with positive hums and all three begin staring at the screens.
a graphic plays over the screen, showing a photo of the auditionee in question as well as his name, age, and date of birth as a quick introduction to the audience. ASAKURA TOUMA, the graphic reads, before dissolving into the room where the auditions were held. the camera shakes slightly as it zooms in to focus on touma. the boy introduces himself, reciting the same information that was on the graphic moments ago, but then he continues beyond that. more names are listed, each a little nonsensical, until he reveals that those are the dogs that he walks every few days.
“cute,” ran murmurs, the scene cutting back to the judges for a moment. she smiles and rests her head on her interlocked hands. “he stands out immediately.”
“what’s he doing?” jihun frowns, brow furrowing together as he sits back in his seat with his arms crossed. the scene shifts back to the audition, to the young man rapping, singing, and flapping his arms around and jumping here and there with an apparent lack of coordination. he sends a heart to the camera, even as his own ears turn red and flustered. “at least he has the sense to be embarrassed,” jihun remarks, clearly unimpressed with the performance. yuna, silent, presses her lips together with disappointment coloring her face as well.
"if i'm being honest, i want to try everything at least once." touma tells the camera.
“that’s the problem,” yuna points out. “he’s too ambitious for his own skill level. if he’s a dancer, he should just dance at this stage. if he’s a singer, just sing. he wasted a lot of energy trying to show too much at once and made himself look worse.”
“there’s potential there,” ran points out anyway, “he’s creative and energetic. we can work with that.”
finally, the camera zooms in on his special skill, the artwork he creates on the spot. bright colors and wild shapes paint the canvas in a way that seems to fit the auditionee’s zany personality rather well.
“well, that was a bit of a disappointing start,” jihun sighs. “hopefully the next will be better.”
a new profile graphic lights up the screen, now introducing CHOI HANGYEOL. after a few seconds, it again fades into the audition setting with a young man smiling gently at an auditionee much younger than himself, hardly more than a child. "ah, your number's much smaller than mine, are you lost?" he asks gently, a warm smile on his face that could melt even the coldest heart. "i think your group is down that way. good luck! you'll do great."
“he has leadership qualities,” yuna points out, the screen splitting to show her reaction to the scene in front of them. “he’s good at talking to people and putting them at ease.”
the man on the screen nudges the auditionees next to him. it’s impossible to know if they’re old friends or if they just met today, but the other boy on the right and the girl on the left seem to be soothed by his presence, smiling in return when he raises his fist in a small fighting! gesture.
“we’ll have to see if he’s any good,” jihun remains determined to be unimpressed, still frowning at the screens. that said, the camera picks up the slightest bit of interest across his expression as hangyeol introduces his audition as being self-choreographed.
whatever the judges had been expecting, it was apparently not beyonce. even if the argument could be made that the song and choreography was much better suited to femininity than the young man performing, there is no denying the grace and power in his movements as he seemingly takes up the whole room, turning the audition into his own personal stage. the young man even has the sense to look directly into the eye of the camera, a strong gaze capturing the viewers instantly.
“this is what we were expecting from this season,” yuna smiles appreciatively. “he’s a talented dancer, it’s clear he’s very experienced as a performer as well. i wanted to see more by the time the performance was over.”
"i've always felt most in my element when i can be strong or sexy, or when i'm given something i can make bold choices with,” hangyeol’s face takes over the screen again, a quiet confidence coming from him even as he answers the rapid-fire interview questions. “i think as long as i get to put a little bit of me into it, i'll perform it well."
“do we need to see his special skill? i think we’re all quite smitten,” ran half-jokes with her fellow judges. regardless of her wishes, though, the television shows all anyway. again, the natural leadership of hangyeol is on display as he selects staff and fellow auditionees alike and begins teaching them what appears to be quite the difficult dance move, the death drop. from the name alone, it seems to intimidate some of the less experienced dancers. but, within minutes, hangyeol has them all looking like professionals.
“even i have to like him,” jihun finally admits. “i wish i could sign him today.”
“it wouldn’t be fair if you did,” ran chides him again, “i’m sure we all want a chance to make him an offer.”
the next contestant’s profile lights up the screen, introducing HAN YURA to the audience.
“what was the first thing you thought about when you woke up this morning?” a staff member asks her, showcasing her interview first unlike the previous contestants.
“what shoes to wear and whether it would match my jacket,” yura answers.
the scene is interrupted by a snort from jihun, clearly unimpressed with the response.
“which company would you want to receive an offer from and why?”
“delta studio,” the woman answers with confidence.
“she doesn’t even know the name of my company,” jihun laments. “and she expects me to sign her? she’ll have a lot to prove.”
“she’s angered the bear,” ran jokes with a smile. “i like her enthusiasm, though. i hope we can channel it to the right areas.”
only a short clip of her rapping is shown, the judges seemingly less than impressed other than a remark from yuna that competent female rappers are rather rare. “she has the fundamentals, at least,” the judge concedes. “and choosing to do something different from her peers makes her stand out.”
as if standing out was a problem for yura, her special skill seems to take all three judges by surprise. the screen is painted in hues of red and yellow as the woman proclaims that she’s about to heat things up. the ends of the batons catch and suddenly all three judges are on the edge of their seats, watching as the woman dances with fire in the middle of the room.
“she’s lucky the fire alarms didn’t go off,” jihun is even taken aback as he remarks on the special talent.
“look at how precisely she throws the baton,” yuna points out as the camera catches the whirling fire stick soaring just below the ceiling of the building.
“i like her,” ran grins. the warm lights from the screens in front of them almost make her look like she’s the one playing with fire, a surprisingly sinister look for a woman known for her warmth rather than heat. “did she prove herself to you, jihun?”
“not yet,” the stubborn man frowns, “but it’s a start.”
while they may want to see more from yura, it’s time to move onto the next contestant. the profile of HAN JUEUN takes over the screen, only lasting a few moments before dissolving into a lovely girl dressed in a flashy pink outfit.
“she looks the part of an idol,” yuna points out, a smile on her lips. “didn’t another group dress like that for one of their songs? it’s familiar somehow.”
“i think you’re right,” ran agrees. “it wasn’t one of our groups, was it?”
their question is answered soon enough by jueun’s performance. for a brief moment, the screen cuts to a music show recording of kara performing the original song, then a split screen with jueun showing how she would blend seamlessly into the group in her current getup.
“she’s smart to focus on her vocals,” jihun points out. “but if she’s going to dress up like that, shouldn’t she dance? if she’s a singer, she should have chosen a song that’s a little more vocally impressive. pretty girl is a popular song, but it’s not very difficult. i would’ve liked to see something else.”
as if directly responding to the man’s critique, the response from jueun’s rapid-fire interview plays across the screen next. “i think the perky, fun and energetic style that’s similar to what i prepared today fits me the best because i’m looking to have fun! plus, i think my smile’s really pretty,” the girl laughs. and it’s true; she does have a lovely smile.
the girl continues to surprise as she initially explains that she had a ribbon rhythmic gymnastics routine prepared, but instead of batons and ribbons she pulls tangerines of all things out of her backpack. “i will now show you the fastest tangerine peeling i guarantee you have ever seen.” she announces.
“she’s a bit odd, isn’t she?” ran remarks, though the fond smile on her face betrays that she’s rather charmed by the oddity. “she’s not as flashy as the last auditionee, but she captures your attention anyway.”
in less than ten seconds, the girl has two tangerines entirely peeled. the camera cuts to a staff member trying to peel a tangerine of his own, seemingly testing how difficult the task really is. it’s clear that he’s not nearly as good as the girl.
the scene fades away into the next auditionee profile, HAN YUWOL. “that name seems familiar, somehow,” jihun remarks. he doesn’t have time to place the memory before the skills performance begins, yuwol singing in the center of the stage.
“he has a unique voice,” jihun speaks again, “unrefined, but i like that it’s different.”
“he’s good at expressing the emotions too,” ran points out.
“what is the most interesting place that you have been to wearing the shoes that you’re wearing now?” the staff leap into the interview rather quickly, never betraying their emotions about the performance they witnessed. it’s not for them to decide anyway.
“it's probably... a forest somewhere. i was trying to get myself lost." yuwol responds.
“excuse me?” jihun nearly chokes as he takes a sip of water from the bottle on the desk in front of him. “where did they find the kids who are auditioning this year? none of these people are normal.”
“i think it’s fun,” ran beams.
“they know how to stand out,” yuna laughs, seemingly baffled by the young man’s response.
"not sure if this counts as... unique, but this is what i do to make it through my daily life. i play my violin." the young man is clearly a skilled musician from the moment he draws his bow across the strings. although only a short portion of his piece is shown on camera, it’s clearly high-level playing.
“that explains it,” jihun nods his head, “musicians are neurotic.”
“you’re one to talk,” ran laughs.
the profile of the next contestant up interrupts the banter between the judges. HWANG JINGREN’s face and basic information light up the screen before fading back into the audition, the young man standing before the staff and immediately singing a slower, poignant song. the scene flashes to the three judges, their expressions unreadable. they almost seem bored.
there’s very little commentary on jingren’s performance, for better or worse, before he’s immediately thrown into the rapid-fire interview. this one stands out, however, as being a little less rapid. perhaps it’s a strategy, or maybe the young man is just good at hearing the sound of his own voice. and yet, somehow, very little of note comes out of his lips. the editing does him no favors as it speeds up each response to the questions, making him look like he rambled on and on but also never really exposing what he actually said.
“he’s a bit…” ran seems to struggle with the right word for a moment.
“he’s boring,” jihun finishes for her, not one to mince his words or try to soften the blow. “the fundamentals are there, but there’s no personality to this one.”
“he has potential,” yuna argues, “his vocal fundamentals are strong and he must have good stamina if he’s able to do handstands like that.”
“lime can have him, then,” jihun snorts dismissively. “though i thought your standards were higher than that.”
the show is quick to hurry away from a lackluster performance and onto the next contestant, his profile displayed in all its glory. HWANG YEJUN’s turn is now on display before the judges. those with a keen eye might notice hangyeol next to him or remember him as one of the contestants that the other man encouraged earlier in the episode. for only a moment, the cutting and scrambling of clips of an mnet show for reactions and views is betrayed.
“another musician,” jihun points out as yejun pulls out his guitar. “let’s see what this one has in store for us.”
unlike the violinist, yejun comes across as much more normal. his responses are soft-spoken, matching the way his hands move across the strings and frets almost lovingly.
“he has a nice voice,” yuna praises the short performance. “though his pronunciation could use some work. it’s a… choice to perform a song in a language you’re not proficient in at an audition like this.”
“it’s nice to hear authentic music, in a sense,” jihun remarks, “everyone else so far has sang acapella or to a pre-recorded backtrack. there’s skill in being able to play and sing at the same time as well.”
"i can't whistle,” it seems as if the young man makes the confession out of the blue, though it’s clear it’s in response to one of the interview questions. perhaps the editors wanted to continue the ‘all musicians are neurotic’ trend even with a more mild-mannered contestant. “i've tried to learn, but no sound ever comes out." he punctuates the thought with a demonstration that makes all of the judges laugh.
“he’s cute,” ran giggles, “yuna, does lime have any workshops on teaching trainees to whistle?”
“we don’t, but i’ll make that suggestion to ceo kwon,” she laughs.
the judges watch as the young man demonstrates his talent next, jihun wincing as a staff member intentionally clips one of the strings of the guitar. the young man is right when he admits that he’s not the quickest in the world at restringing a guitar, but the time passes quickly anyway. perhaps more impressive than the stringing is how quickly he tunes it.
“does he have perfect pitch?” jihun’s brows raise. “normally someone would use a pitch pipe or tuning fork, or even the low e string to get the right note. he didn’t use any other sound for reference.”
“it’s not as uncommon of a skill as you’d think,” yuna points out, “especially among musicians.”
ultimately, yejun’s time on screen comes to an end somewhat unremarkably. he’s quickly replaced by the profile of ITO SEIRA, the second foreigner to appear so far.
“she’s the second japanese trainee we’ve seen so far,” yuna points out, “this show must be gaining international interest.”
“i’m not sure we can take credit for that,” ran smiles, “it’s last year’s contestants who must have captured everyone’s hearts.”
it turns out that seira, like yura before, is another rapper. she performs a senior’s song, fairly proficiently for someone who is not yet considered a professional.
“it’s a shame that the rappers we’ve seen today haven’t written their own lyrics,” jihun sighs. “it’s a wasted opportunity.”
“i think she has more performing experience than we know,” yuna observes, “she’s a little nervous but she seems to know what she’s doing.”
very little is shown of seira’s interview, the editors apparently thinking nothing is worth showing to the audience. they only briefly show her answering the questions as ran looks down at her notes, seemingly lacking interest in the contestant before them.
the girl pulls out a bag of watermelon seeds and anyone who has seen a variety show before should know where this is going. she’s admittedly quite skilled at getting the seeds she spits into the air to land exactly where she wants them to.
“it’s unladylike,” jihun frowns.
“it’s cute,” ran disagrees.
“she’ll do good on variety shows with skills like that,” yuna also concedes.
again the scene changes to the next contestant, bearing the profile of JANG HYUNKI. his profile photo fades into the auditionee himself, scanning down his body until reaching his bare toes, exposed for all to see.
“what?” ran laughs aloud at the foot reveal. “did he rush here and forget his shoes in the morning?”
“dancers sometimes perform barefoot,” yuna reminds her fellow judge. “though… it’s a bit brave to walk into a new place with nothing on your feet. i don’t know if i would have made that choice.”
the young man announces that he will be performing original choreography, piquing jihun’s interest again. “we’ll see how this compares to the other,” he remarks, “i’m guessing it will be an entirely different style of dance.”
as predicted, in stark contrast to the bold, captivating choreography that hangyeol had shown before, hyunki displays a far more emotional performance to a much slower, ballad-esque song.
“some emotion seems to be missing,” yuna murmurs, seemingly still deciding exactly how to place her critique. “he choreographed it himself, he says, but some parts almost seem… robotic? like a performance of what he thinks the emotion should look like instead of actually feeling it himself.”
“i see what you mean,” ran agrees. “i think more practice with facial expressions might help… and he seems a bit rigid as well.”
“it’s a strong choreography, though,” jihun, shockingly, gives the highest praise of the trio of judges this time. “he just might not be the right dancer for it, even if he made it. i can’t tell you how many songs have been written that the writer couldn’t sing as well as the performer. it happens.”
"what can you bring to the table that we won't see in any other contestant?"
"no one else here can dance the way i do,” hyunki answers the question with confidence. “and execute all the styles i can with the same, or even close to similar, charisma and talent."
“am i the only one who would love to see hangyeol try his choreography?” jihun remarks, a sly grin on his face. a rivalry is already being established by the judges and editors. “i feel like he’d make him eat his words.”
“i agree,” yuna smiles as if imagining the showdown already. “hangyeol was much more expressive. he wouldn’t dance it the same way… i suspect he would do it better.”
the young man’s special skill is ventriloquy, and the judges seem more disturbed than impressed by this one.
“what a strange skill… and that he uses it to torment his friends,” ran frowns.
“i don’t think i believe that he could do that perfectly on a whim without any practice,” yuna’s expression darkens as well. “maybe his real talent is storytelling.”
“that’s a nice way of saying lying,” jihun says the quiet part out loud. the mood of the judges darkens for a moment. they are not yet a fan of this contestant, as far as the editing shows.
the editors are quick to move onto the next segment, introducing KIM ARA through her profile graphic.
“she’s pretty!” yuna remarks, cooing over the young wannabe immediately.
“she photographs well,” ran agrees, holding back laughter at yuna’s cute reaction.
the contestant is another dancer, showing off a routine usually performed by animated video game characters. the song was very popular, but it wouldn’t be unheard of if someone hadn’t seen the choreography performed by a real human being before.
“it’s not the most impressive choreography, but it shows she has the fundamentals of dance down,” yuna observes. “i wish she had chosen something a little more challenging to show off her skills.”
“unless she doesn’t have the skills to show off,” jihun, always the pessimist, points out.
“hush, you,” ran swats him on the arm. “they’re all here to learn.”
"why do you want to become a kpop idol?" the staff questions the girl, moving onto the interview without any further preamble.
"i enjoy dancing a lot,” ara responds, “i enjoy performing on a stage, and i enjoy being in the spotlight.”
“she reminds me of me when i was younger,” yuna smiles. “it’s good to have a love of the stage. being an idol is a hard job to have if you’re not passionate about it.”
“it only gets harder,” ran nods her agreement.
ara’s special talent is juggling, perhaps made slightly more impressive by the fact that she handles three completely unrelated objects with ease instead of evenly-sized juggling clubs or balls.
“can you do that?” ran suddenly asks of jihun.
“i don’t know,” jihun admits, but somehow is willing to embarrass himself and give it a shot. he makes a weak attempt at juggling the pens and water bottles on the table in front of them, only for everything to come crashing down from his lack of experience.
“apparently not!” ran laughs.
up next is JORDAN MOON, as announced by the profile graphic displayed on the screen.
“as someone who has flown thousands of miles to be where i am today, it will be worth it in the long run.” jordan’s voice is heard as he stands in the audition room, preparing for his turn to show off his skills.
“where is he from?” jihun looks through the notes in front of him, looking for the answer.
“new york,” ran finds the answer first.
“that is quite the trip. did he really come all the way to korea just for this show?” yuna’s brows raise expectantly.
“we did remark about the international interest,” ran points out.
jordan is a singer, and a talented one at that to be performing beyonce for the staff and judges. it’s a difficult song, certainly harder for a deeper masculine voice, and the camera cuts to yuna nodding her head appreciatively.
“is it bad if i say he’s a bit… boring?” jihun pretends to beat around the bush for a moment before going in for the kill. “as yuna would say, he has vocal fundamentals. but is that all he has?”
“let’s see,” ran refrains from passing judgment before the rest of the tasks are completed.
"what would you do if you won ₩1,000,000,000 in the lotto?" a staff member asks.
“if you spot me front row at a beyoncé show, you do not know me.” jordan’s tone is lighthearted, but his joke goes over like a lead balloon with the judges. jihun’s frown deepens.
“is there more to his personality than being a beyonce fan?” he remarks, clearly unimpressed. even ran now keeps her lips sealed, her own opinion falling low enough to refrain from commenting further.
perhaps the final nail in the coffin is a lackluster special skill, showing off a painting that he claims to have made himself.
“when we had other contestants showing their skills live to our judges, i’m not sure if we can really accept this,” jihun sighs. “we don’t even know if he really painted this himself. which, if i’m being honest, i’d expect it to be beyonce if it were really his own work, based on everything else he’s shown us.”
“he has talent, but he doesn’t stand out,” yuna agrees.
“let’s just move on,” jihun frowns.
move on they do to MOON SOOYOUNG, whose profile takes over the screen not a moment later.
“oh,” jihun’s brows raise at the mention of this contestant’s name. “she’s auditioned for my company before… look here,” he points to something in his notes, unseen by the audience. “she’s the older sister of one of my trainees. do you remember MOON JINYOUNG?”
“he was on last season,” ran recalls, the best memory of the group or perhaps just the quickest at reading the notes provided to them. “he ended up in studio delta after all?”
jihun nods. “he’s quite the dancer. i wonder if his sister is similar.”
the young woman is also dancing to viviz’s maniac. as the music plays, the judges seem to watch her with rapt attention.
“this choreography is much more difficult than it looks,” yuna points out, “and the fact that she makes it look just as simple as the original is a good indication of her skill. she’s a bit stiff in the waist, but she probably just needs to work on her flexibility in that area.”
“she doesn’t look happy to be here,” ran points out. “it’s probably nerves. still, i’d like to see her smile.”
her interview questions pass quickly and without any comments from the judges, seemingly uninterested in her responses. “it’s interesting that she doesn’t mention her brother,” jihun points out only once.
sooyoung only recaptures their attention as she showcases her special talent, using another unnamed auditonee as a model to show off her ability to quickly change someone’s style in a matter of seconds.
“i didn’t know that bang trick!” yuna exclaims. a brief break where both she and ran attempt to try something similar on themselves ensues, though it seems that sooyoung’s ability to style hair far exceeds the judges’.
they move on quickly to the next contestant, PARK AHYOUNG introduced to the audience with her profile on the screen.
“why do you want to become a kpop idol?” the staff asks her.
the girl shrugs, seemingly disinterested in a genuine response. “i just think it would be fun.”
“excuse me?” it’s yuna who bursts out laughing, perhaps thinking of her own early experiences as a trainee and young idol and the path that brought her here today. “that’s… a bit flippant for an audition, don’t you think?”
“she can be flippant if she has the skills to back it up,” jihun argues.
the girl seems to have some manners, though. she bows politely to the staff before beginning her performance. of all of the rappers today, ahyoung is the first to use her own unique creation rather than someone else’s songs. that said, the lyrics aren’t exactly her own either.
it’s jihun’s turn to laugh now, though lacking the incredulous tone from yuna moments ago and genuinely amused instead. “these are all lyrics from QUARTZ’s songs,” he explains to his fellow judges, who look confusedly at him. “how clever to put them all into one performance like this… i like this one.”
it’s high praise from the notoriously picky judge. even yuna begrudgingly has to acknowledge ahyoung’s skill.
the impish character returns, however, for her special skill. the girl drags a male staff member into the center of the room where she begins doing his makeup. "you have really nice skin,” she tells him, “your skincare routine must be amazing. you have better skin than half of the girls whose makeup i've done before, for real."
“i think her special skill is actually flattery,” ran half-jokes.
“he does have nice skin,” yuna agrees.
the final results are… not terrible, but maybe a bit questionable. at least the man can leave the studio when filming wraps without attracting too much attention in public.
“ryeo ‘luciel’ jihyun,” jihun reads the next contestant’s name out as RYEO JIHYUN’s profile is displayed on screen. “it’s certainly a… unique name.”
“he must be another foreigner,” ran offers.
the young man does not command any great stage presence as he steps forward for his audition. yet there’s a charming freshness about him as he smiles and introduces himself. he wastes little time before beginning his song, perhaps much more somber and sentimental than was expected of him.
“he shows off his vocal color well,” yuna praises him. “this was a good song choice for this audition.”
“his gestures are nice,” ran observes, “there’s a lot of singers who don’t know what to do with their hands or look too rehearsed. he seems to feel the music well.”
they move quickly to the interview portion, a staff member suddenly asking the question “what style of music suits you best and why?”
“i grew up playing classical instruments and listening to them, i even used to participate in a piano competition,” luciel explains, “classical music conveys dramatic emotional stories that comes from the heart, it’s like poetry in the form of music. so i believe that kind of genre suits me.”
“he’s a classical musician but sang a rock song?” jihun looks confusedly at the notes before him as if unsure if he’s getting something mixed up or that they’re hearing the broadcast correctly. “they really all are quite strange, aren’t they?”
as if in direct response to the ceo’s comment, luciel introduces his special talent: “it wasn’t for long, but for a while i learned waacking,” the contestant reveals.
ran can’t help but let out a delighted little laugh. “he’s full of surprises, isn’t he? classical piano, rock, and now waacking… what can’t ryeo luciel jihyun do?”
“he’s very versatile! i like it,” jihun remarks.
the clip of luciel’s dancing is only a short few seconds, leaving the viewer wanting for more. it only lasts a few seconds before the editors are introducing RYU INHO with his profile taking over the screen.
“another guitarist,” jihun points out. “is that an amp?”
an amp it is indeed with inho pulling his electric guitar out for his vocal audition. it’s a different color than yejun’s had been before, as could be expected for acoustic versus electric instruments, but the judges are seen nodding along and enjoying the vibe of the song.
“he seems confident,” ran observes. “he must have practiced this a lot.”
the staff begin questioning him shortly after the performance wraps up, launching into their tirade of questions without hesitation. "why do you want to become a kpop idol?"
"i love to sing and connect with people. if i was to become an idol, i would be able to do both of those at the same time. maybe have the power to make positive impacts on people's lives."
the scene cuts back to the judges, a rare shot of all three smiling as they listen to the wannabe explain his dreams on screen. “we’ve heard similar answers a lot,” yuna points out, “but he seems very sincere”
“i don’t know what it is. he has this aura that makes you want to root for him,” ran smiles.
"i would be fortunate and honored to receive an offer from any of the three companies but any three of them would also be very lucky to have me. i don't have a preference." inho answers the staff a second time.
jihun bursts out laughing. “he’s bold… but i suppose he’s fair. it’s wise not to choose a favorite when all three of us have to decide if he moves forward or not.”
inho’s special talent is revealed next, showing the young man quickly breaking apples in half with his bare hands.
“maybe we should be afraid of him,” yuna jokes, “he’s strong.”
“oh, he’s handsome,” ran is quick to remark on the next auditionee up, the screen showing the good looks of RYU SIWOO alongside his basic information. and indeed, even in a very amateur selfie image, the young man has remarkable good looks.
“look at that watch,” jihun points out the contestant’s outfit, “that’s cartier. he’s decked head to toe in luxury brands… either he comes from money, or he gets tricked by counterfeits easily.”
the young man before them is another rapper, performing in a rather unique style that has jihun leaning forward with interest and the two women looking rather confused.
“does he want to be an idol like that?” yuna questions, “his tone is good, but i don’t think he has a sound that will appeal to many people.”
“that’s why we shape them with further training,” jihun argues, “he’s starting from a decent foundation. you said that for other contestants, remember?”
“what is the most interesting place that you have been to wearing the shoes that you’re wearing now?”
“the windsor castle,” siwoo responds, “i went with some family friends last year, they really wanted to see the place.”
“he definitely comes from money,” jihun confirms, “i haven’t even been to windsor castle. have you?”
he glances at his co-judges, who both shake their heads in confirmation.
“i hope there’s more to his personality than luxury brands and european vacations,” yuna straightens the stack of papers in front of her. “he’s good enough that we can see what he does on the show. but i’m not so sure about him.”
the less than glowing review fades into a new contestant, now introducing SONG JAEYOUNG. little time is spent on initial observations from the judges this time, now diving right into the young man’s performance. fast-paced, intense, and…
“is that japanese?” yuna blinks in astonishment. “he’s korean, isn’t he?” she checks the information in front of her again, seemingly not believing what she’s hearing. “this is certainly a… unique choice.”
“i couldn’t tell,” jihun grumbles, “he sounds like he’s yelling more than singing. i suppose i was distracted by that.”
the trend of somewhat erratic contestants continues with jaeyoung, the judges watching bewilderedly as he somehow balances a whole stool on a single finger, tilted and wobbling just a little but upright nonetheless.
“you have to admit, that’s a little impressive,” ran points out.
“it’s just physics,” jihun remains unimpressed.
“people say i’m horrible at shutting up,” it’s the only intelligible part of the rapid-fire interview that the audience can hear from jaeyoung. the rest is sped up to the point it’s all gibberish, the young man going on and on with his answers and proving his point.
“i suppose it’s charming in a way,” ran smiles. “we certainly have a lot of characters on this season.”
“we could do without them.” jihun’s grouchiness has yet to fade.
next up is SONG JIAYI. as her profile fades from the screen, the young woman’s audition begins immediately.
“it’s a bold choice to perform goeun’s songs in front of her ceo,” jihun remarks, glancing sideways at ran.
“i’ll admit, i’m surprised she’s not singing,” ran muses, “goeun’s choreography is flashy, but not overly demanding since she’s such a strong vocalist. it’s… an interesting choice to focus on her dance instead of vocals when choosing one of her songs.”
“maybe she has a weak voice,” yuna suggests. it’s what they’ll have to believe until they see jiayi sing, someday.
"which company would you want to receive an offer from and why?"
"lime entertainment." the scene cuts to a small fist-pump from yuna, grinning as her company is chosen by the contestant. jiayi continues to explain: "i grew up listening to cherish, and i admire lime entertainment's strategy when it comes to business.”
“interesting she would say that but sing a song from a sr media artist,” jihun the instigator remarks. ran shoots him a sharp look.
“oh my god!” all three judges exclaim at the same time when jiayi reveals her special talent. it’s unnerving to see a human body contorted into unfamiliar, uncomfortable-looking shapes. "i'm very flexible," jiayi laughs.
“she looks like a horror movie,” jihun attempts to recover his composure after the shock.
“i wish she had picked choreography that used her flexibility better,” yuna remarks. “showcasing it like this is… a little scary.”
the next profile should be familiar to anyone who watched last season and even the judges clap their hands appreciatively when they see STEVIE PARK appear on screen.
“i’m surprised he’s back,” jihun’s brows raise. “i hope he’s matured since last season.”
a short compilation of stevie’s antics of season one plays across the screen, from him goofing off in practice rooms to chattering away with his fellow contestants while he probably should have been practicing. what will stevie do this year? the question is asked of the viewers.
“what was your favorite thing about the last season of next gen?” an off-screen staff member asks stevie the question, the cameras zoomed in on the young man’s face to study his reaction.
“i think probably…performing and working with people. i’m a social butterfly after all.” stevie laughs, and a short cut to the judges seems to say i know without anyone actually verbalizing the words. the clips from last season have already highlighted that well enough. “some might say it’s my biggest flaw, though.”
“at least he’s self-aware,” jihun sighs. “let’s hope he’s learned about the proper time and place for such things.”
“he was a dancer, if i remember,” yuna chimes in, “i wonder what he’s showing us today.”
subverting all expectations, stevie chooses to sing instead. he moves, of course, as all dancers do when they hear music, but it’s simple sways and hand movements, a clear focus on his vocals this time.
“i think it’s safe to say that the class clown is turning over a new leaf,” ran generously forgives stevie for last season’s transgressions. it’s time for a new slate, after all.
“his skillset has definitely broadened,” yuna admits.
there seems to be an uncharacteristic amount of nerves from the boy as he introduces his special skill. he rushes to grab something and the cameras catch the slightest tremor in his hands.
“he’s nervous,” ran points out. “i don’t remember him being so anxious last year.”
“i skateboard, and i skated here,” stevie stumbles over his words as he adjusts the skateboard in front of him, placing a foot on it in preparation for his trick. “so i’ll– do a trick i guess. i’ll keep it safe, though, i promise!”
the promise is good and the young man lands his trick without incident. he gives a thumbs up, smiling perhaps in relief. “safe and sound.”
“he’s changed,” ran murmurs.
“hopefully for the better,” jihun responds.
the screen changes to a new profile, introducing a new face after reminiscing over an old one. YAMAMOTO KAITO’s profile fills the screen before fading into the auditions, kaito repeating some of the same information as the basic profile already listed but then adding on a short list of the many jobs he’s currently working.
“he’s busy!” yuna exclaims. “how does he have time for this?”
“he made time for it,” jihun folds his arms and leans against the table in front of him. “i like this type of person. he works hard but makes time for the things he’s passionate about. this type usually makes for an excellent artist.”
his skills are tested soon enough, kaito showing his prowess as a rapper before the staff and the judges sitting behind the cameras.
“look,” jihun points out to his fellow judges, “he’s making eye contact with every single person in that room, even if they’re not paying attention to him.”
“i wonder if he’s been on stage before,” yuna ponders aloud.
“if not, he just has good performing instincts.” jihun seems to be a fan of the young man already.
“i have a strong passion for rapping and dancing, so i'd love to share my own passions with more people while performing on stage someday.” kaito’s interview is condensed into a single response in the broadcast.
“i wish he had shown his dancing too,” yuna frowns and scribbles down a note. “if he’s passionate about both, he could have shown it.”
“especially since his special skill was beatboxing,” ran agrees. “that usually goes hand in hand with rapping, doesn’t it? it would have been nice to see a little more diversity in his skills.”
“still,” jihun agrees, with a twist, “what he did show he did well. i think there’s promise there.”
the show is nearing its close, but there’s one contestant left to show the viewers. YOON EUNWOL is last, and hopefully not the least of the many talented auditionees evaluated by the judges for this season. the scene fades to a rather nervous looking wannabe. eunwol greets the staff and introduces his audition piece. “i prepared a dance to a song that i created, i tried to make a pop feel with a ballad flow.”
“so he created the choreography and the track?” ran’s brows raised, impressed at the amount of work that goes into such a feat.
“don’t get excited yet,” jihun warns her, “i’ve seen something like this go badly before.”
eunwol performs, though the majority of the broadcast is dedicated to the judges’ reactions. the consensus seems to be that they remain unimpressed.
“fundamentals, this and that,” jihun sighs, “but no character or soul. even you have to admit, it was lacking.” he glances at yuna, who nods her agreement.
“attempting to show us something completely unique was a great idea. i just wish he had shown us more,” she agrees, “i feel like i didn’t learn anything about him, his style, or his personality. if you’re creating a performance from scratch, usually you put a little bit of yourself into it.”
"what two things do you consider yourself to be very bad at?" a staff member asks the young man, who answers with awkward laughter.
“interviews seem to be one thing i think i am bad at,” he admits. the response earns a smile from the judges. at least eunwol is cute.
however, all three stare incredulously at the screens before them as the wannabe stands up and walks away as soon as the rapid-fire interview is over. “he just left?” yuna sputters, in awe at the audacity. “what about his special skill?”
“he may have thought that he already showed it during the skills part of the audition?” ran offers, trying to come up with an excuse or explanation.
“under normal circumstances, i would call for an immediate disqualification,” he shakes his head, poorly holding in his laughter. “but since the special skill was my request, i think i’ll let this pass. honestly, it’s just funny. and i want to see what this guy will do next time.”
ran and yuna look utterly unamused by jihun’s decision, but even the two of them can’t override what the studio delta ceo decides for his own challenge.
“well, i think that wraps up the auditions,” ran announces, clapping her hands together once. “we have some decisions to make, some contestants to reach out to, and a show to put on.”
the screen fades to black. then, all of a sudden, a bright flash and a new set appears with the season two theme music playing in the background. for the first time, RHEE JIAN appears on screen to reprise her role as emcee of the show. “welcome everyone,” she smiles as she gazes out across the contestants seated expectantly before her, “and congratulations on being selected to participate in season two of NEXT GEN!”
the camera pans across the contestants, revealing the auditionees who made it past the final round of auditions and onto the show.
“now that we’ve started to settle in, it’s time we revealed a secret to you,” the hostess smiles, a glint in her eye. “i know you believed that you were selected by the mnet and axis staff that hosted your auditions a few weeks ago. however, i’m sorry to say that we tricked you.”
the giant monitor behind jian changes suddenly, showing the three judges in the studio room they had observed all the auditions from. “our judges were watching you every step of the way, evaluating your character as well as the skills you showed. why don’t we give them a warm welcome as well?”
yoon jihun, seo ran, and yuna emerge from backstage to stand next to jian, waving and smiling at the contestants that they had judged not so long ago. a round of applause and cheers go up and the camera captures the most exciting reactions from the contestants who were surprised by the sudden news.
“we’re sorry for tricking you,” ran smiles as she addresses the crowd. “but we’re under a lot of pressure to make this season bigger and better than last year, and we agree that all of you can help up with that.”
“you’re here today because you’re all talented or interesting enough that we want to see more from you,” jihun explains. “over the next few weeks, you’ll be put through our training curriculums and given a series of missions to complete. the winners will be signed to a company of their choice, or we’ll choose if we want to sign you. the losers will be sent home.”
yuna speaks next: “we’re excited to see how all of you grow and develop throughout your time on NEXT GEN. we wish the best for all of you and your careers as performers and hope that this will be an exciting and informative experience for all of you.”
“that said,” jian takes over as host again, “this is a competition. based on your auditions, our judges have ranked all of you in order of most promising to least promising. those who didn’t make the top twenty-one were eliminated from the show entirely. while we’re not sending any of you home today, it’s good to know where you rank and to try to ascend to the top. you should all be working for first place.”
a pause falls over the crowd while they’re left to absorb the information.
“without further ado, let’s reveal the rankings,” jian turns to the screen behind her again, now displaying a graphic for the contestants’ initial rankings. one by one, the contestants are revealed until only the number one and last place are left. “in first place for episode one is… CHOI HANGYEOL!”
the camera catches hangyeol’s reaction, as well as eunwol’s reaction to being revealed in last place for the first episode.
“this is only based on the auditions that you prepared on your own,” jian explains, “but we want to make this fair for everyone. your first mission will be the CENTER SELECTION.”
a short clip of last year’s song and male and female centers is played before returning to the present season. “the song this year is DO BETTER. once again, you will all learn the same song and choreography to perform alone for our judges to evaluate your potential to be the center of a future group. the center is a pivotal role for any idol group and should be someone who has the stamina to sing and dance at the same time, and make both look and sound good,” jian explains.
“you’ll be working with axis staff and coaches to prepare you for this evaluation. however, we’re also bringing in some of the most qualified special coaches to help you achieve success this season. please allow me to introduce our special coaches,” jian gestures to the side of the stage, where the mystery guests file out one by one.
fans from last season will recognize the top three winners from last season, YEOM SARANG, LEE SEOJUN, and ZHOU RENYI. they’re joined by fellow trainees and former contestants LEE NAYOUNG and PARK DOHYUN, as well as a new trainee to the public LEE CHAERIN. each special coach introduces themselves briefly before jian resumes her hosting duties.
“sarang, seojun, and renyi will be assisted by nayoung, dohyun, and chaerin in preparing you all for this evaluation. listen closely to their advice as they’re familiar not only with what it takes to win NEXT GEN, but also the intricacies of each company they represent.”
“you’ll be re-ranked based on your performances. just like last year, the top female contestant and top male contestant will be selected as centers. you’ll all be performing on an episode of MCOUNTDOWN following the evaluation, so this is a great opportunity to show your best side to fans and the judges alike.”
“we’re excited to see the results of this season of NEXT GEN and all that you can accomplish,” jian smiles at the contestants again. “good luck!”
the show ends by zooming in on the logo on the screen behind the host with do better’s instrumental playing in the background.
AXIS LABELS And Mnet Team Up Again To Announce NEXT GEN Season 2 Auditions
TV/FILM • 1 hour ago
On Wednesday, February 14, 2024, fans eagerly awaiting Valentine's-themed notes and gifts in the form of photos or videos from their idols were met with a much-awaited surprise. Instead of love letters from BxY, PRIZM, QUARTZ, or any of AXIS LABELS’s other much-loved artists, fans were delighted to find a video announcing the second season of NEXT GEN is in the works and seeking new talent to join the survival audition program!
In the video released and shared on both Mnet and AXIS LABELS’s social media it is revealed that Rhee Jian is reprising her role as the beloved host of the event. Jian herself suggests in her portion of the video that she’ll be joined by special guests throughout the season, though she gives no hints to who from AXIS LABELS’ robust talent lineup may be joining her on screen.
Also returning are all three judges, each representing one of the companies under the music and entertainment conglomerate; SR Media and Studio Delta will be represented by CEOs Seo Ran and Yoon Jihun. Notoriously private and selective with public appearances, judging from Lime Entertainment will instead be headed by world-renowned artist YunA for the duration of the show.
Last season was a whirlwind of amazing performances, wild emotions, and unforgettable stories from the contestants. The top three winners, YEOM SARANG, LEE SEOJUN, and ZHOU RENYI, all opted to join different companies as they claimed their prize, dashing fans’ hopes for a supergroup trio of their favorites debuting any time soon. It’s been confirmed that LEE NOEL and LEE NAYOUNG both remain with Lime Entertainment and SR Media respectively, while Studio Delta has retained both PARK DOHYUN and MIN HYEJIN.
For those who are interested in auditioning to be a part of the program, preliminary auditions can be submitted through Mnet’s website.
